《The Reincarnated Master Craftsman Just Wants To Live A Peaceful Life.》


 (Prologue) Eli and the craftsman.

    Alice.


    Umm. Hello, I guess? I would like to say this since the start. This is a slice of life novel, not LitRPG heavy, this chapter probably has more LitRPG elements than most of the other chapters. So if you are not looking for things like this then I implore that you don''t read it. I didn''t really know what I was doing when I started writing it, so it is possible that I eventually re-write the first few chapters.


    Sidenote: This is my first story, one of the issues it has is the somewhat weak prologue and the fact that the chapter lengths are under 1k words until Chapter. 8, and chapter length increases to 2.3k on average in chapter 16. and aftewards.


    If you decide to read it hopefully you can look past all the weird chapter lengths and maybe the cliche''d starting plot.


    [Zeileheim]


    A fantasy RPG game. That had a simple class system with combat and non-combat classes. The game allowed the player to select three classes that became fixed. It was an extremely complex game. Allowing players to create their own gear and techniques through certain classes. The item rarity was divided in 7 tiers. Creating weapons was not popular because of a certain mysterious NPC, the [Master Craftsman] ¡°Kuro¡±. However, no one knew if he truly existed or not.


    Some players thought it was just a myth or an in-game legend. Certain bosses dropped extra [Relic] grade weapons that had a marking with the shape of a half-moon on them. When said items were appraised, it would display who created the item as well as the process. All of the marked items had the same name on them¡­ ¡°Kuro¡±.


    Most of the [Master Craftsman]¡¯s items displayed weird descriptions such as ¡®Forged with the mystic fire of the [Legendary Dragon Aizen] using [Eternal Mithril]¡¯. The descriptions were surreal. Fitting for a legendary figure of in-game history.


    Thus the Master Craftsman was born. And the weapon marking became his signature, there was a single problem. Said craftsman was not an NPC. It was a player character. The only player that was able to create such equipment.


    Why did no one know?


    One of the reasons was that he was a top player. Top players in [Zeileheim] are judged by their combat potential and stats rather than their classes. Which means non-combat classes were never there.


    Kuro did not show up very often. All most players knew about him is two out of his three classes. [Tamer] and [Summoner]. Most players cursed him because he was one of the few players to have full [Relic] tier equipment. No one knew anything else about him. Eventually, even the developers said Kuro was a real NPC.


    ....


    [Title unlocked: Legend]


    Even the developers acknowledge you.


    ¡°How did this happen!¡±


    I decided it would be funny to drop one random item from time to time when bosses were defeated. Yet people are making legends about a legendary NPC? How does that even make sense? Even the developers went along with it.


    ...


    The truth behind [Master Craftsman] class. Maxing out [Alchemist], [Enchanter] and [Smith] classes. Caused them to mix together creating [Master Craftsman].


    No one knew about [Master Craftsman] class. Who would be insane enough to not pick a single combat class?!


    Of course, that would be me.


    [Zeileheim]


    It was the only MMORPG that I ever played. I liked the idea of creating items. So I went with the [Alchemist] [Enchanter] and [Smith] classes. None of them were popular. Craftsman classes were hard to level and NPC items were always better.


    One of the reasons no one liked non-combat classes was that they don''t give any type of stat bonuses. So they were considered useless for the most part. I thought that nothing could be better than crafting your own gear even if my character did not have combat potential at all, despite stats being so meaningful. ¡®Nothing is better than crafting¡¯ I thought so at the time. That is until I met her.


    One day after a year of playing I found myself in the capital shopping for materials, however, I was sitting while being boiled by the scorching sun looking at the ground in defeat due to not finding anything. I saw a shadow cast over me and I heard a sweet voice.


    ¡°Hey, you the guy all in black.¡±


    I looked to see who it was and who would say something so accurate about me, It was a girl with black hair and brown eyes, and had quite a charming smile and observant eyes. When I looked up to see her she suddenly said in the same cheerful voice.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go on an adventure, ok?¡± I just looked at her like a statue, but ended up nodding and stood up. My thought process was, ¡®I basically have nothing to do.¡¯ I was not in high hopes due to how things normally ended up for me, as I was thinking I heard her voice.


    ¡°My name is Eli. Nice to meet you~!¡±


    ¡°Kuro¡­¡±  I instantly answered. She paused for a second from my unfriendliness but after some fidgeting, she decided to ask, something that I was not quite happy about.


    ¡°So, Kuro... What are your classes?¡±  I paused for a second hearing this but I said with a somewhat stiff voice.


    ¡°...[Alchemist], [Enchanter] and [Smith]...¡±


    I expected her to maniacally die from laughter or just point at me in public and mock me, yet she did not say anything like that. Instead, her eyes sparkled and said in a joyous tone.


    ¡°That is so cool!¡±


    She did not critique me, not even flinch to me saying it. She seemed to genuinely think that, which made me quite happy.


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    ¡°Nn. More importantly¡­¡± She paused and started thinking of something, restlessly tapping her foot on the ground and holding her chin with her hand,.she was like that for quite a while. It was weird. I grew worried so I decided to talk to her.


    ¡°Eli?¡±


    After a brief silence, she looked at me with an empty face and hollow eyes. I heard an empty voice.


    ¡°... Kuro.¡±


    ¡°W-what?!¡± What is with this girl?! She was silent yet again, looking blankly at me, she opened her mouth and spoke with the same tone.


    ¡°... Where do you want to go?¡±


    So she was thinking about where to go. This girl¡­ I decided to attempt to cheer her up saying something cheesy.


    ¡°I don''t know, anywhere is fine as long as it''s fun¡±


    ¡°Nn!¡±


    She cheerfully nodded from my cheesy line. Looks like it worked.


    We started our seemingly endless adventure. It was weird at first but we eventually started to get to know each other. Turns out we both had terminal illnesses. It was unexpected however we were happy that we could share our joy and sorrow together. I picked up the habit of marking the things I crafted with a half-moon symbol. I thought it was cool at the time.


    Eventually, we got each other a set of [Friendship rings] they did not do anything special aside from telling you when your friend was near. When a set would touch each other the gems on them would shine. We both thought it was important to represent our friendship in a ¡®physical¡¯ way. The ring was in the shape of a silver coiled branch with leaves on it and a small emerald green gem on the top. We decided to wear them on our ring fingers because it meant a lot to us.


    Two years later I acquired [Master Craftsman] when I reached the max level, LVL.120 I was really happy about the endless possibilities. And I ¡°unlocked¡± two-class slots. I started grinding for the only combat class I always wanted with help from Eli.


    I acquired [Tamer] and tamed Fenri a common lvl.1 wolf. But he was special to me. I found out that you could equip items to your tamed beasts. I decided I wanted to make the best gear and equip it to Fenri.


    Eli jokingly suggested that I should become a [Summoner] and use summons to help me create weapons. ¡®It might make the weapon rarity higher if the summon is rare or special in some way.¡¯ She said.


    I took it seriously... We embarked on a long journey. Fenri reached LVL.40. The highest level possible for a common monster. However, that was not going to stop me. I kept crafting new gear for Fenrii, as I got better. Fenri eventually surpassed LVL.40 somehow I got a message along the lines of. ¡®Your beloved pet has transcended the impossible.¡¯ and when he reached LVL.120 he became known as a ¡®Fenrir¡¯ the lord of wolves.


    Eli refused all the weapons I crafted for her, saying: ¡®Well¡­ I don¡¯t think I can accept this..¡¯ I promised myself at that time that I would make a rapier and give it to her. I knew she liked them, and would not be able to refuse them once I did my masterpiece.


    Two years later I met him inside a desolate cave. My smithing companion... The [Legendary Dragon Aizen]. A dragon with shiny silver scales. Amber eyes that looked into your soul with seemingly infinite knowledge. His mere presence was outstanding radiating regality and pride. The only legendary dragon in existence and theoretically the best summon. No one had ever contracted Aizen. Somehow I managed to make Aizen agree to help me make a weapon. However, when he first heard the idea as I was pulling out some [Eternal Mithril] He did not take it well.


    ¡°Are you insulting me?! You mere human! Asking me to heat a mere piece of tin! Do not look down on me!¡±


    After begging for my life the dragon ended up agreeing seeing no one else had used this material to make something before. I started the process. He gave me a bloodshot gaze every time he had to heat the metal after hammering. Before long my work was finished¡­ It was a black rapier with cobweb patterns engraved into it.


    I named the rapier [Obsidian Weaver] because it shone like obsidian and had cobwebs on it. And it happened...


    [Title Unlocked: Relic forger].


    You have achieved the impossible, perhaps there are no limits?


    The dragon seeing the rapier froze and then started to look at the rapier repeatedly then started laughing.


    ¡°Bwahaha... Very interesting human! Very well. I the [Legendary Dragon] shall serve you!¡±


    Aizen bowed his head with peerless elegance giving an indescribable feeling of loyalty. We made a contract shortly after and he became my summon. I gave the rapier to Eli as the weapon I promised myself to give her. She reluctantly accepted it but she was fidgeting and looking at the ground with somewhat flushed cheeks afterwards.


    I lived in a hospital, my parents would come to see me every now and then¡­ The thing is, they would reluctantly see me. Every time I saw them, they restlessly tapped their foot on the ground as if waiting for this to be over. I didn''t quite understand it. I lived in a lonely hospital room with a white tiled floor and a small window that had the beautiful view of a brick wall, well it is not like I could see the outside even if I wanted to.


    I was born paraplegic, and a rare disease that made my body weak. The doctors told me that I did not have much time to live with my parents in the room. My parents kept solemn expressions however their eyes sparkled when they heard that, every time they placed their gaze on me they would just narrow their eyes as if they were looking at trash.


    For some reason, I still received some education paid by my parents, I didn''t quite understand it, I still don¡¯t understand it. However, I am grateful for it.


    One fateful day, my parents came in, their solemn expressions were the same however their gaze¡­ It was warm, their eyes were sparkling, despite their mostly emotionless expressions they had a faint smile on them. I knew something was wrong... Everything was wrong. Doctors started entering the room, some were fidgeting, others were looking with anticipation as if they wanted to see what would happen. Others were shaking and looking at the ground.


    The creaking door opened, a doctor came in while holding something that looked like a helmet and handed it to my parents while saying something to them. They eagerly got a hold of it and came closer to me. One of them whispered into my ear trying to sound regretful.


    ¡°I am sorry.¡±


    The words I heard felt empty, afterwards everything was black. No room, no doctors. Only darkness¡­ And endless abyss. Time went by and then I saw a light. It just looked like a circle, I could not see the ground however I felt it... I felt my body. I froze for a few minutes. The weird and unfamiliar feeling was not going away. I realized this was my reality now. I heard an emotionless voice.


    [Welcome to the system.]


    Days went by, I grew more and more familiar with everything. Apparently, this was some sort of enhanced VR prototype that was in experimental testing. More days went by, I kept talking with the integrated AI. That could keep me company; despite it being an AI it was rather disappointing. It worked more like a browser if anything. A year went by. One day out of boredom I asked.


    ¡°Is there something else I can do?¡± The voice did not answer instantly, it was silent. Then I heard his reply.


    [There are VR games.]


    I found myself intrigued hearing the unfamiliar concept, I wanted to know more. I discovered a certain game of a genre called ¡®fantasy¡¯ it consisted of adventures and surreal concepts and medieval age. It was quite weird but I found it amazing. I found an online game called...


    [Zeileheim.]


    In that game. I met her, my first friend, we went into countless adventures getting a few but precious companions. Sadly I stopped seeing her, ¡®Maybe she met her end.¡¯ I muttered with hollow words. I found myself depressed not doing anything... She made me make a promise before she was gone.


    ¡®To live a happy life.¡¯ I muttered grinding my teeth. As if that could happen! A world without you is not the same, yet you want me to be happy? She left me a memento but I don¡¯t think I will ever use it. ¡®Will I ever see her again?¡¯ I muttered.


    I found myself reaching the end of my life span two years later. That day... It was a starry night sky, however, I could not admire it. The silver moonlight was piercing through the leaves of the forest, the rustling of the leaves and the gentle breeze were perfect. But¡­


    ¡®How did I end up like this?¡¯ I muttered as my cold body hit the ground, making a dull sound. I made a promise, it was a simple one. ¡®To live a happy life.¡¯ yet¡­ Right now I cannot even move a single muscle of my body. ¡®Just like real life¡­ haha.¡¯ I lifelessly muttered. Even though she is dead¡­ Even though I promised.


    ¡°How do you make a promise you can¡¯t fulfill!¡± I managed to say with the little energy I had left. I was not happy with myself. Making a promise yet I cannot even fulfill it?! I am a fool, no. We are fools¡­ She promised and died¡­ ¡®Now it¡¯s my turn I guess?¡¯...


    I could not feel my body anymore, everything from my face down felt completely lifeless. I could not focus my eyes, I could not see. I felt my eyes getting blurry. I was crying. Was it really worth it to not go on a last adventure with her? Instead, we just talked¡­  Now here I am, dying¡­


    ¡®I guess it is not my turn isn¡¯t it?¡¯ I said with a voice that was about to fade. I could not see, I could barely think. With the little strength, I had, seeing there was no point anymore. I made use of the memento she left me. I consumed an item called ¡®[Cat¡¯s Charm]¡¯


    ¡®I wonder if the description is true?¡¯ I jokingly said.


    [Cat¡¯s charm: The universe smiles upon you. Be careful you don¡¯t have 9 lives.]


    Well, I am dead now, not like it matters if it smiles upon me or not¡­ I wish I could fulfill my promise. I always wanted to live leisurely, yet I ended up like thi-...


    [Logging out.]


    [System error.]


    [Retrying...]


    ...


    [Title unlocked: Wish upon a star.]:


    A star listened to your wish. Do not regret it.


    ...


    [Effect of ¡°Wish upon a star.¡± has been activated.]


    [ -1000 Karma (Permanent)]


    [Relocated.]

 (Chpt. 1) A girl.

    Alice.


    Also sorry in advance if chapter events feel ''forced'', this should be the only one that is like that.


    As always. Spot any potato grammar? Feel free to point it out. EDIT 5: Ok I managed to fix spacing for status.


    ¡­


    [Relocated.]


    [Be careful what you wish for.]


    ¡­


    My consciousness returned. Something was touching my face but I could not tell what it was. It was soft. I could smell and feel the grass beneath me. I could hear rustling from leaves being swayed by a gentle breeze.


    ¡°urgh¡­¡±


    I groaned, while I slowly opened my eyes and I was met with the sight of a wolf with a white snow fur. Equipped with golden bracelets on each of its legs. They had intricate rune patterns that were engraved into them. It looked like the guardian of a God of some sort. His fur looked fluffy and soft. I did not panic because I recognized said wolf. It was my only tamed beast Fenri.


    I got up. My body was strangely light for some reason, I felt nimble and my senses were heightened. White hair covered my eyes. I spoke in confusion.


    ¡°White hair?¡± What came out was a high-pitched voice, not my usual raspy voice¡­ Something was wrong¡­ I could not see the sky but the sun pierced through the foliage of the leaves, as I was looking around I saw a lake in the myriad of trees. I needed to know what I looked like, I did not have white hair nor have a childish female voice.


    I decided that I had to head towards the lake. When I looked at the reflection. I saw a girl that looked 14 years old or so, I froze for a second. The girl also froze, I started moving my arms, the girl did so too... That girl was me. I had white silky hair that reached my shoulders it shimmered in a myriad of colors under the sun. Heterochromatic eyes light blue for the right and hazel for the left. My favorite colors... That was unexpected but made me quite happy. A slender body build. My face... Beautiful eyes filled with curiosity, a small button nose, and a charming smile; small chin and round cheeks. And a pair of cat ears and a tail?! The problem was.


    ¡®I am a guy¡­¡¯ I muttered in defeat as my legs gave up on supporting me, my body hit the cold soft ground. How does this even happen¡­ I have cat ears and a tail, I do not mind it because it was the effect of the item, but how do I even turn into a girl¡­


    Fenri sensed something was wrong and approached me. I petted him; he slowly closed his eyes like a cat. My appearance is completely different yet Fenri still recognized me. It made me somewhat happy.


    ¡°Thanks¡­¡±


    I muttered in a lifeless voice. After lamenting my appearance on the ground endlessly I stood up.


    I was in a forest and could not tell where I was and more importantly everything felt real. VR was amazing however it could not completely mimic the real thing or so I was told. VR was my only reality. There was no HP bar, no anything.


    ¡°Status!¡±


    I decided to try saying it to see if I was in the game or not. Nothing happened. I was thinking about how could I open my status. When I thought about it. It happened... An image flashed inside my head.


    Name: ¡°Kuro¡±


    Race: Beastkin [Cat¡¯s charm (Permanent)]


    LVL.120


    Title(s): [Wish upon a star] [Relic user] [Relic forger] [Legend] (51 others)...


    Karma: -500 [Wish upon a star (Permanent)]


    HP: 85650/85650(+ 50%)


    MP: 34590/34590(+ 50%)


    ST: 50420/50419(+ 50%)


    Luck: 5000 [Cat¡¯s charm (Permanent)]


    STR: 80920(+ 50%)


    AGI: 79010(+ 50%)


    CC/CD: 300%(+ 50%)


    Classes: [Tamer lvl.40.] [Summoner lvl.40.] [Master Craftsman lvl.40.]


    Special skills: [Translation] [Alchemist] [Smithing] [Enchanter] [Cat¡¯s eye]


    ¡°Is this because of my karma?!¡±


    I asked in surprise seeing my karma in -500, I wasn¡¯t expecting a reply, yet...


    [Karma: A point system that evaluates good and bad actions going from -500 to 500. Having bad karma can only affect you in negative ways. Bad karma effects include: Fear towards the user. And multiple curses. Karma increases from good and bad deeds which are judged by the system.]


    And what is with my luck stat?!


    [Luck: A mostly useless stat. Can lessen the curses from bad karma if the stat is high enough.]


    ¡°¡­¡±


    This is bad... I decided to open my inventory and decided to equip a night-blue cloak with thin white borders to cover my ears. The cloak should also cover my tail. Even if it is not the game completely. Being a beastkin is problematic. Negative karma makes it worse, NPCs are hostile towards you for almost anything. I hope I do not have to deal with that. On a positive note. I still had all my items and in-game currencies. However, all of my clothing turned into the female counterparts including the one I was wearing. My beautiful gearset turned into a white sleeveless top, a dark blue skirt and long socks. My boots looked more feminine but they still looked mostly the same. All of my gear¡­ I struggled to keep my composure seeing all of it turn into woman clothing. After regaining my composure I checked the special skill I did not have before.


    I had a new skill named [Cat¡¯s eye] after inspecting it. It was basically an Appraisal skill with the bonus of being modifiable. I did not really understand how it worked at all aside from the Appraisal effect. At least I figured out how to use the skill.


    Just as I was thinking about that. A smell reached my nose. It was metallic and sweet, took me a few moments to figure it out. It was blood. I ran in the direction the smell was coming from, swaying through the trees and rocks on the ground like it was nothing. I was strangely quick. I started hearing metal clashing against each other and battle cries? It did not take long for me to reach the edge of the forest.


    Alice.


    Author''s explanation corner:


    Status might look a bit weird so I will briefly explain it here.


    The ''(+ x%)''s are basically x% increase on said stat when in combat. Simple enough right? This stat is influenced by item tier.


    [HP: Health Points]


    [MP: Mana Points]


    [ST: Stamina]


    [STR: Strength]: This stat means the average attack power using all of the possible methods of attack.  (MC''s case: Summoning and Fenri.)


    [AGI: Agility]: How fast can you react and move.


    [CC/CD: Critical Chance and Critical Damage.]

 (Chpt. 2) Slave merchant.

    Alice.


    Bonus chapter!


    I saw a horse-drawn carriage from a merchant. It seemed to be forcefully stopped on the dirt road due to the wheel marks on the road. There were only plains on the opposite side of the road. I could see some corpses and what looked like a group of thugs battling some guys in leather armor. ¡®Probably bandits and adventurers.¡¯ I thought. I was feeling nauseous from looking at the corpses. I managed to muster through it somehow. When I looked again I did not get nauseous anymore. ''Weird.'' I muttered.


    I was observing carefully. the merchant started panicking. ¡®This is perfect for me¡¯ I muttered as I began to walk slowly towards the carriage because there was no point in being afraid.


    ¡°Who are you!¡±


    Shouted one of the thugs while looking at me, I do not blame him. After all, I cannot even answer that question myself. When they could finally see me properly they looked at me with eyes that were filled with desire¡­ Disgusting.


    ¡°Oh, a woman? We will make a lot of money from this, Capture her!¡±


    ¡°Fenri!¡±


    At that moment Fenri jumped from the bushes and pounced one of the bandits. That much was expected. Except... the bandit almost instantly died after the pounce. My face stiffened¡­ ''Isn¡¯t this too overkill?'' I thought while the massacre continued. Fenri got quite bloody from it. But more importantly, I realized why he almost died instantly. Using [Cat¡¯s eye] I discovered that his level and stats were overwhelmingly low. Looking back, it''s impressive he survived the pounce.


    Name: ???


    Gender: ???


    Race: ???


    LVL.5


    HP: 0/150


    MP: 0/120


    ST: 0/130


    STR: 90


    AGI: 70


    CC/CD: 10%


    Classes: [??? lvl.?]


    Special skills: [???]


    Looks like [Cat¡¯s eye] cannot display information that I don¡¯t know. It only seems to be useful for stats. But at least I know why he died like that. I just hope that [Cat¡¯s eye] stops displaying me information that it doesn¡¯t know and only the things I want to know. I might be asking too much though.


    [Cat¡¯s eye has been updated.]


    Why are the notifications so random!


    Oh right¡­ The merchant.


    ¡°Are you ok?¡±


    I asked the merchant who was shaking in fear. All of the adventurers seem to be dead as well. I do not blame him, I would probably be shaking in fear if I was in the same situation. Probably¡­ After a brief moment, he finally spoke.


    ¡°T-Thank you for saving me!¡±


    He then bowed deeply while shaking. Now that I looked at him properly. He seemed to be a gentleman as well as a wealthy merchant. Although he is still shaking.


    ¡°No problem¡­¡±


    ¡°W-What can I do to reward you for saving me, umm... Missy?¡±


    The moment I heard that. I felt extremely uncomfortable and practically froze but that cannot be helped. Imagine being called that when you were formerly a guy, there''s only so much I can take... He does not know my name nor do I intend on telling him. ''I guess there''s no other way.'' I muttered in defeat and sighed. He started sweating for some reason.


    ¡°Can you answer some of my questions?¡±


    ¡­


    After a lot of questions. I found out a lot of things. My currency is useless however it seems to be valuable. I managed to confirm this is not a game. The RPG system seems to be ¡°God¡¯s work¡±. I also got directions to the nearest town and found out, that there is an ID system for towns and jobs. Thinking about it the world is similar to [Zeileheim] but it isn¡¯t.


    I pointed at the carriage and said:


    ¡°What kind of goods do you sell?¡±


    ¡°Slaves.¡±


    After a brief pause, I asked to confirm.


    ¡°... Slaves?¡±


    I did not expect to run into a slave trader.


    ¡°Yeah, slaves but those damned bandits killed a few of them!¡±


    He said angrily. He then broke into a cold sweat, I did not really understand it. I wanted to buy or exchange for some materials or items out of curiosity, but they are just slaves. I don¡¯t want a slave¡­ But I want to see them... Out of curiosity, I asked.


    ¡°Could I see them?¡±


    ¡°This way¡­¡±


    Alice.


    Author''s explanation corner 2:


    Hey, it''s me your wonderful author. Today I shall explain why in this chapter the thug did not have a title section.


    Even if it only displays ''???'' title section will not appear if the person has no titles. Simple right?


    "Where is my item tier explanation? Slams desk." Relax Timmy, now is not the time. They will be explained in Chpt. 4 and explained inside the story in Chpt. 5 and 6.

 (Chpt. 3) Ari and, Yami?

    Alice.


    Chapter with over 1k words? Truth be told this chapter is 2 chapters combined... I do not intentionally write them short, It''s just that it looks long in my word document so I end chapters when I think they look ''long enough''... Yeah...


    He led me towards his carriage. It was in bad shape due to the combat. I peeked inside and I saw some humans, beastkins¡­ even an elf? Some of them were dead. My curiosity got the better of me...


    When I was about to stop looking I saw a young girl. It was a loli. She was dirty and had tattered clothes. She was shaking in fear. She had golden hair and empty golden eyes. I could only describe her as cute aside from being in fear and her horrible state... I am not a sadist. I asked the merchant about her,  he replied.


    ¡°The young girl was sold by her parents.¡±


    I went stiff. I felt anger boiling inside me. But I managed to keep a poker face. I could not let this happen I want to save that girl, and if possible even make her happy. I am sure she would¡¯ve done the same thing too. Thus I decided.


    ¡°Could I have her? I will pay some of my weird coins if necessary¡­¡±


    ¡°T-There¡¯s no need to pay. She is yours, have this as well.¡±


    He then handed me a key for her slave collar and a bag while shaking. The bag was quite heavy. I realized it was full of coins. I pointed at the bag asking if it was ok to have this. To which he replied:


    ¡°Life is not cheap. T-thank you...¡±


    It seems like he struggled to say the last part. I don¡¯t know why. He has been shaking for the entire time I have been with him, I hope he is ok. The girl was very afraid but got forced to go to me. I got a bit annoyed because of that however he has been treating her nicely considering she is a slave. I put the bag of coins in my inventory.


    ¡°I-I have to go, I-I am in a hurry. Sorry¡­¡±


    He said while stuttering and trying to sound regretful. But I did not mind. He left shortly after in a hurry. I started thinking about what could have caused the fear and shaking the merchant was feeling. I remembered ¡®Karma -500¡¯...


    Looks like I made a mistake¡­ Then I remembered... The girl.


    When I looked at her she seemed extremely scared. She was on the brink of tears. She asked in a shaky and low voice that was filled with anxiety.


    ¡°W-What a-are you going to do to me?¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    I did not reply. How do I even reply to that? I have no idea what to do. She thinks I am going to do bad things to her. As I was thinking she seemed to grow more and more afraid especially every time she looked at Fenri. So I decided to lower my hood hoping for her to be at ease. ¡®If she can see my face she might calm down right?¡¯ I thought.


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    We looked at each other for a few seconds. She eventually stopped shaking. I decided to ask her for her name. I would be troubled not knowing what to call her.


    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±


    ¡°A-Ari¡­¡±


    ¡°My name is... ¡°


    I did not think this through¡­ I guess I will have to do with that.


    ¡°My name is Yami¡±


    [Name changed: Yami]


    [Error: Cannot change name.]


    [Yami becomes your secondary name.]


    I heard that. While trying to make the friendliest smile I possibly could. How does that even happen! What type of error could influence a name change. I did not even mean to change it! Fenri had no traces of blood when I realized. I did not understand it. But an auto cleaning function is always welcome. As I finished thinking about that I noticed Ari was fidgeting a lot, from what I could see she was no longer afraid of me so, I paid it no mind. So I turned around to walk towards the lake. Until I heard that...


    ¡°M-Master Yami.¡±


    As soon as I heard that. I stopped in my tracks, my body went completely stiff. I guess it cannot be helped, she was my slave after all. I turned around and looked at her. And started walking towards her with a solemn expression while holding the key.


    ¡°I-I did not mean to! I am sorry!  I am sorry!¡±


    She started apologizing. She grew more and more anxious the closer I got to her until eventually I was right in front of her. She was shaking uncontrollably. I knelt down and grabbed her slave collar. I inserted the key into the keyhole at that moment the collar released some magic particles, and it broke when I twisted the key.


    Ari was frozen in place.


    ¡°U-Umm...?!¡±


    ¡°I am not your master and you are no longer a slave.¡±


    I said. Smiling at her. She still did not understand what just happened.


    ¡°B-But then what will happen to me?¡±


    She asked in a voice that was on the verge of cracking. I could see tears welling up in her eyes. I had to say something quickly, I didn¡¯t mean to make her cry.


    ¡°Do you want to come with me?¡±


    I asked. She slowly nodded while wiping her tears. Her eyes slightly brightened. She walked to me with some kind of difficulty.


    ¡°Thank you¡­¡±


    She muttered while looking down.


    I called Fenri over. Ari was afraid of him. I started walking towards the direction the lake was in. Leaving the battle massacre behind as if nothing ever happened.


    She followed with little steps. She understood that Fenri did not mean harm and stopped being scared of him. We eventually arrived at the lake. She was visibly confused which is understandable. Why would you drag someone to a lake?


    ¡°Ari, go take a bath. Fenri will assist you.¡±


    ¡°Y-Yami. What are you going to do?¡±


    She asked with an anxious voice.


    ¡°I am going to check things.¡±


    ¡°W-...¡±


    After saying that. I gave Fenri a random set of clothes and undergarments from my inventory for Ari to wear. Fenri gently pushed her with his head towards the lake. She wanted to say something earlier but decided not to. I turned around and walked away into the forest while thinking. About things, I needed to check like what exactly is this world. The system is there. But just how much similar is this place to [Zeileheim]? Do items retain their effects? Am I strong? Am I weak? Looking at the bandits maybe I am on the strong side. But it¡¯s better to not be conceited. When I thought about it, I had not seen a single monster.


    Alice.


    EDIT: Added "I put the bag of coins in my inventory" I did not notice the coins basically disappear without me writing anything about them.


    Hey, it''s me your beloved author, I decided to try to draw a cover for the novel itself, tell me what you think of it and be sure to vote in the poll. If it wasn''t obvious already from the pacing, this novel is slice of life with heavy adventure, however, it mostly focuses on slice of life. Best of both worlds in my opinion. The image is WIP, the characters are your beloved Kur... erm I mean Yami, and Ari.

 (Chpt. 4) Demon King鈥檚 ring?

    Alice.


    Chapter 4. I hope you guys enjoy it.  EDIT: I uploaded a cover, now to wait. Let me know what you think about it in the comments.


    As I was walking on the forest I found a suitable spot to sit under the shadow of a tree, the grass was cool and comfortable, I decided to test various items, after testing multiple items. They all worked. I was surprised, but more importantly. This is no longer a game, this is reality which means¡­


    A creepy smile surged on my face while I was looking at my inventory. [Relic] grade accessories and gear met my eyes. There are no longer class restrictions nor limits to the number of items you can equip.


    This was good but I decided to equip only necessary items. I would be troubled by losing such rare items. Crafting materials are not free after all... I took out 2 rings. One of them was a [Relic] that had the [Suppress Aura] passive ability. When I first made it, I honestly thought it was the most useless thing I have ever created but I was happy to have completed it. Auras in-game had no effect on gameplay so there was no need for such an item, how ironic that I am depending on it now. At least It should hopefully help in negating the effects of the negative karma aura. I do not have high hopes for it though even if [Relic] items are basically in the ¡°God¡¯s Realm¡±... I called the ring: [Useless Ring of Insanity v2], One of the major reasons was that only an insane person would attempt to make such a ring. However it was a really pretty ring, that was transparent as if made out of glass and would absorb the aura of the wearer into itself. Then it would turn into the color of the aura itself.


    To reach ¡®-500 karma¡¯ you would need to commit deeds fitting a Demon King. Which makes me quite upset. Nonetheless, I still put on the ring. When I put the ring on my hand¡­ The ring turned jet black and started leaking wicked aura.


    ¡°Waa, it basically turned into the Demon King¡¯s ring.¡±


    I said while looking at my hand, but it seems to do a good enough job of absorbing the aura.


    The other ring was a [Legendary] grade item. When I acquired it I thought it was useless. I only kept it for the sake of my collectionist spirit. I never would have thought I would actually need to use it for its ability. It was a [Disguise] skill but it wasn¡¯t an amazing disguise. It could only hide body parts. Which was perfect for me. I have [Relic] items that can change appearance but I think this ring should be enough. It is just a bland silver colored ring.


    I do not want people to know I am a beastkin. People will probably jump at me trying to enslave me or something. The same goes for Ari I do not want her to be a slave again. So I think the ring is necessary so I can take her with me. I made sure to confirm both of the rings worked completely fine.


    I remembered the skills I wanted to test [Alchemy] and [Enchanter]. Will [Alchemy] and [Enchanter] work the same way? I pulled out my trusty, jet black, smithing hammer in the name of experimentation. I started hammering a rock while trying to make a pocket knife. The result was unexpected. The rock turned into a [Common] rarity iron pocket knife. This was not possible in the game. While [Common] items are literally worth nothing. ¡®Upgrading¡¯ materials in-game through alchemy was hard and incredibly costly, now it almost cost me nothing. I seem to have used some mana. Not to mention my enchanting activated passively. ¡®So it turned into a [Common] item because of enchantment?¡¯ I made a hypothesis in my head but I had no time to test it. Also worth mentioning that you couldn''t grab just anything and use it as a crafting material in the game.


    I decided to wear the [Disguise] ring, my ears and tail retracted into my body... It felt weird. I got up from under the tree and started heading towards the lake. I walked quite a lot when the lake was in my line of sight, I saw Ari wearing¡­


    Wait what did I just give her?


    She was wearing white snow-boots. Leggins that had encrusted black scales. Basically pseudo-armor and a sleeveless top similar to mine. I basically gave her an entire [Legendary] gear set. But now that I think about it she is probably safer this way. Now that she was clean, she looked really cute and her long golden hair reached her waist and looked completely clean. She looked really nervous for some reason. I did not pay much attention but now that I looked carefully at her, she looked to be around 10 or so years old.


    I arrived at the lake, when Fenri sensed me he rushed over to me, I started petting him like the good boy he was. Now that I thought about it he behaved more like a dog than a wolf... When I was done I did not see Ari anymore. ¡®Where could she be?¡¯ As I was thinking that I saw a shaking bush. I decided to peek into the bush.


    ¡°Hey, Ari what are you doing in there?¡±


    ¡°Kyaaa! Get away!¡±


    She shouted while panicking and swinging her arms around, she was cute ¡®Nn.¡¯ I nodded internally¡­ Wait now is not the time to think about that!


    ¡°Ari it¡¯s me Ku... Y-Yami.¡±


    ¡°Wait, Yami?!¡±


    ¡°Nn¡­¡±


    I nodded, she noticed her mistake, Ari looked embarrassed about it. It was just past mid-day.


    Alice.


    Author''s explanation corner 3:


    Wait 3?! I must really be bad at explaining things. Hey it''s me your beloved author (This intro is getting annoying but I will keep doing it.) What are we explaining today? Drums... That''s right, we are explaining why Fenri has white fur! Just kidding it''s the thing you all have been waiting for. The 7 item tiers, this will be a quick rundown of the in-game perception of tiers, why not in this world you ask? Ari is a very smart girl so she can handle it.


    EXTRA:


    Kuro''s current height is around 165cm.


    Ari is around 145cm.


    WEAPON TIERS:


    Weapon tiers are as follows:


    [Common] and [Uncommon]: Normally dropped by monsters.


    [Rare: An item that transcended the limits of uncommon.]: You would normally get your first rare item after 2 weeks of playing.


    [Flawless: An item whose quality is impeccable.]: It was said that the best tier a craftsman player could ever make before he came.


    [Legendary: Iconic and powerful items from the game''s story]: In the new world they are still the same, This is the best tier a casual player could ever hope to obtain.


    [Divine: Legendary gear that was received a blessing from the gods]: Only the 5% of players had an item of [Divine] tier.


    [Relic: Mythological items that should not exist, capable of reaching the realm of the gods]: Only 0.1% of players owned an item of this tier. Exclusive drop from world bosses.  It was said that there were less than 10 people that all of their equipment was [Relic].


    Question that no one asked:


    Q: "What is with Kuro''s inventory?"


    A: "Imagine you have been playing the same game for over 8 years."

 (Chpt. 5) Items.

    Alice.


    Chapter 5 is out! I''ve been writing chapter 9 for 3 days, someone help me.


    Ari explained that she was anxious because of the equipment I gave her since it was so nice. While she was explaining she also muttered: ¡®Also you are no longer scary so I did not recognize you¡¯ in a really quiet voice. I barely managed to hear. I don¡¯t know if I should be upset or not. Ari sat down under a tree. While I was thinking I heard Ari¡¯s stomach.


    ¡°Grrrr¡­¡±


    ¡°O-Oh, are you hungry?¡±


    ¡°N-no¡­ Grrrrr¡­¡±


    When she answered, her stomach grumbled again. Her face was bright red, she was really cute but I could not let her be hungry like that. I pulled out some fruits for her to eat from my inventory and offered them to her.


    ¡°I-Is it really ok for me to have these?¡±


    ¡°Yeah it is ok, I have a lot.¡±


    She quietly received them and started eating, she seemed to be lost in thought. I pulled out an apple for myself and sat down with her to eat, I was getting quite hungry myself after all. Fenri went away somewhere in the forest. But every now and then I could hear faint cries from monsters dying. ¡®Huh, such a convenient wolf, what a good boy, I will make sure to pet him more.¡¯ while I was thinking that Fenri came back, I gave him some meat from my inventory and petted him, he wagged his tail. However my inventory did not have much food to begin with, I needed to go to a town to restock.


    ¡°Yami.¡±


    ¡°Y-yyes?¡±


    Ari tugged on my cloak while saying my name. Pulling me back from my thoughts I replied while stuttering.


    ¡°What happened to your tail and ears?¡±


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s because of this.¡±


    As I said that. I took off the [Disguise] ring. My ears surged from the top of my head as if they were hidden and my tail just popped back up. It was a weird sensation. The ring rather than make an illusion, it seemed to make your body retract the desired body parts or something like that. I did not really understand how it fully worked. Ari¡¯s face lit up and her eyes sparkled when she saw that.


    ¡°Yami! Yami, is that an item?


    She asked with a really excited voice. While tugging my cloak.


    ¡°Yes, it is an item that allows for me to disguise my beastkin features.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s so cool!¡±


    ¡°Ari, here you can try it.¡±


    As I said that I took the [Disguise] ring and put it on her hand.


    ¡°I-Is it really ok for me to try this item?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±


    ¡°W-well aren¡¯t items really expensive? I heard that even [Common] rarity items are hard to come by. If I were to damage it. I-I c...¡±


    She seemed really nervous about it. And stopped talking when she was about to mention something, seeing her all worried I decided to say.


    ¡±I do not know if they are expensive or not but, yes it is ok for you to borrow it. Just try to be careful with it.¡±


    I said while smiling, right after I finished saying that, Ari put the ring on, she started to touch the top of her head as if thinking she would grow ears and a tail. She looked adorable I decided to pat her head. She was visibly happy about it. I started thinking; [Common] rarity items and expensive did not go together. ¡®The world has really changed a lot huh?¡¯ I muttered... I decided to ask Ari for more information.


    ¡°Ari, could you tell me everything you know about items?¡±


    ¡°W-well if you say so.¡±


    She blushed a bit and seemed really happy.


    ¡°From the little, I know there are 6 item tiers and there¡¯s a rumor of a 7th tier.¡±


    Wait¡­ 6 tiers? rumors of a 7th tier? I do not like where this is going. Ari continued her explanation as I was thinking.


    ¡°The 6 tiers are: [Common], [Uncommon], [Rare], [Flawless], [Legendary] and [Divine].¡±


    ¡°What about the rumored 7th tier?¡±


    I decided to ask something I knew the answer for, hoping for a different answer.


    ¡°No one knows if the tier truly exists or not but it is a tier said to reach the power of the gods, those items are named [Relic] tier.¡±


    ¡®Ahhh¡­!¡¯ I screamed internally while holding my head with both of my hands, I do not look forward to the future. Everything I wear is [Relic] tier, what will happen to me?


    ¡°Yami? Yami?!¡±


    ¡°A-Ah... Sorry about that. Can you continue?¡±


    ¡°U-un.¡±


    Ari with a worried look nodded. In the meantime, Fenri came over to us and laid down.

 (Chpt. 6) Disciple?

    Alice.


    Chapter 6. Since I won''t be able to post it later today. I am happy for the support I am receiving for this story. In all honesty, I did not even think people would enjoy it. Thanks for reading this far.


    After Ari saw I calmed down she started talking again.


    ¡°From what I have heard [Common] [Uncommon] are the best a commoner can hope for, [Rare] and [Flawless] are so expensive, only nobles can afford them. [Legend] and [Divine] uhmm¡­¡±


    When she mentioned the [Legend] and [Divine] tier she seemed to not know how to explain it. I decided to see if I could get at least some info on them.


    ¡°So are [Legend] and [Divine] really expensive?¡±


    ¡°From what I heard [Legend] items are only owned by the royal family and as for [Divine]... They are described as items blessed by the gods so they are regarded as national treasures and are protected by the church.¡±


    Ah so that was it, she just did not want to tell me that they were pricey. And had no hopes of ever getting them.


    ¡°Ari, remember you mentioned [Relic]?¡±


    I asked, Ari did not seem to expect the question, she looked confused but nodded.


    ¡°Unn.¡±


    ¡°Why do people think [Relic] tier exists?¡±


    ¡°Well I only heard this recently, but apparently a really talented [Smith] showed up, claiming to be the [Master Craftsman] Kuro''s disciple, affirming Kuro could create a higher tier than [Divine] named [Relic].¡±


    Ahhh, what is this development!  I audibly gulped and my expression turned empty. A disciple? Am I famous?! I started holding my head again while looking at the ground. While regretting my entire existence Ari pulled me back to reality by tugging my cloak.


    ¡°Yami?!?!¡±


    She looked really worried and panicked¡­


    ¡°It''s ok, I have a few more questions.¡±


    I replied with a faint smile.


    ¡°... Only if you do not make me worried again.¡±


    ¡°Nn.¡±


    I nodded slowly and asked.


    ¡°Who is the [Master Craftsman] Kuro?¡±


    Ari looked at me in disbelief, but after a few seconds, she let out a sigh and started talking.


    ¡°Kuro the [Master Craftsman] is known throughout the whole world because of his creations with incomparable quality, his items have a half-moon engraved onto them. However¡­¡±


    ¡°However?¡±


    ¡°Kuro apparently disappeared without leaving a trace 30 years ago.¡±


    30 years? Wait doesn¡¯t that make me over 50 years old?! Everyone knows my name?! I don''t know how much I expected but I managed to keep my composure. I needed to confirm one more thing.


    ¡°Ari, what would happen if people found out someone has an item of the aforementioned [Relic] tier?¡±


    She started thinking for a bit. Her face brightened as she had reached the answer.


    ¡°Wellll, I am not sure but they would probably be hunted by the church. But you do not need to worry about that.¡±


    She said with a cheerful smile.


    ¡°Nn¡­¡±


    My expression turned dark for a second, I thanked Ari. While patting her with a warm smile on my face.


    ¡°Thanks Ari. I do not know what I would''ve done without you.¡±


    ¡°No problem, you may rely on me whenever you can.¡±


    She said while puffing her chest with a little bit of pride.


    ¡°Then also rely on me whenever you can.¡±


    ¡°Nn!¡±


    She nodded with joy.


    ¡°Can I have my ring back?¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    She reluctantly gave it back. When she saw put it on my left hand, she seemed to have noticed something while looking at it.


    ¡°Hey, Yami, that is a really pretty ring, what is it for?¡±


    She asked, her eyes were sparkling with interest. She seemed to be really interested in my left hand. I started speaking while showing her my left hand.


    ¡°Ah well, this is a [Friendship Ring] it basically means you have a really deep bond with someone.¡±


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s so pretty! Do you think I could meet ''that'' someone someday?¡±


    ¡°Well, that¡­ I don¡¯t know, hopefully, we can meet her someday.¡±


    I said with an empty face and a distant look while looking at the sky. Ari tugged on my clothes again.


    ¡°No Yami, we will meet her.¡±


    She said with a really determined look in her eyes. seeing her like that, I felt happy. I do not know if she understood my feelings but I was still happy hearing that. I grabbed Ari and embraced her.


    ¡°Thank you Ari.¡±


    I said with a soft voice, at that moment a felt an indescribable warm feeling. I embraced her for a long time. I was thankful to have her around. When I let her go she seemed a bit sad, but as she was recovering from my embrace, she looked at my right hand and froze for a second.


    ¡°Y-Yami. W-what is that ring?¡±


    She asked with a trembling voice while pointing at my ring. She was pointing at the [Useless Ring of Insanity] or the now Demon King¡¯s ring.


    ¡°Umm¡­ It¡¯s complicated, let¡¯s just say the ring is cursed and I should never take it off under any circumstances.¡±


    I said with a forced smile. Ari seemed to agree with what I just said and did not ask any further questions about it.


    Alice.


    Hey guys author here. Thank you all for reading my story. Hopefully, I can keep making it interesting and entertaining.


    Question that no one asked:


    Q: Why is Ari so knowledgable for a slave?


    A: Is she really just a slave?

 (Chpt. 7) Promise.

    Alice.


    I was relaxing with Ari under a tree near the shore of the lake, the sunlight was just right. Fenri was sleeping next to us. It was the perfect scenery.


    ¡°Hey Yami, is it ok for me to wear these clothes?¡±


    She asked out of the blue while looking at her clothing.


    ¡°Yes, it is, why you ask?¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t these items too?¡±


    ¡°Well yeah¡­ they are.¡±


    After the explanation about items in this world from Ari I had a lot to think about, then I realized I gave a little girl a [Legendary] set of clothes¡­


    ¡°Ari, is there a way to determine an item¡¯s tier?¡±


    She looked at me as if I was joking, I do not blame her when she saw that I was serious, she looked at me in disbelief again and started talking.


    ¡°There¡¯s only appraisal which is a skill that certain items can use and people can use, at least that I know of.¡±


    ¡®Looks like that hasn¡¯t changed huh?¡¯ I muttered well that¡¯s good I wonder if it still works like in the game.


    ¡°Ari, does this appraisal that you speak of need direct contact with the object?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a very weird question to ask Yami, but it does.¡±


    ¡°It also works on people right?¡±


    She looked at me with her eyes wide open. As if I wasn¡¯t supposed to know that, I understand considering I started asking about the skill itself and then said something about it that, I wasn¡¯t supposed to know, so I understand why her eyes went wide open. Wait why am I even thinking about it?


    ¡°Yeah¡­ Yami you are being really weird right now¡­¡±


    ¡°Y-yeah I guess¡­ Sorry about that.¡±


    I apologized while scratching the back of my head, but now that I know this I need countermeasures. I spoke to Ari in a serious tone.


    ¡°Ari.¡±


    ¡°Y-yes?¡±


    She was taken aback from my sudden approach.


    ¡°Make me a promise.¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°ehh?¡±


    She said that with a smug look on her face. I thought this was going to go well. Just why? As I was thinking¡­


    ¡°Instead let¡¯s make a promise to each other.¡±


    ¡°Nn¡­¡±


    I reluctantly nodded.


    ¡°Well Yami you go first, tell me what you want me to promise to you.¡±


    ¡°A? A-ah, Do not let the clothes I gave you be appraised.¡±


    ¡°Ah... Yes, I knew that.¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    I have been tricked...


    ¡°Now my turn!¡±


    ¡°ehh¡­¡±


    She said cheerfully and then her expression turned serious and filled with determination. I was worried about what she might make me promise. Turns out my worries were unneeded.


    ¡°Please let me accompany you!¡±


    My eyes went wide open. I was surprised but I was really happy.


    ¡°Of course you can accompany me Ari.¡±


    ¡°Yay! Now I will discover all of your secrets.¡±


    She said with a playful yet strong-willed voice.


    ¡°Youuuuu¡­¡±


    I embraced her again with warmth while sitting down. She is a smart girl, I started to caress her head almost unconsciously, at that moment  I decided that I would take care of her.


    ¡®I am sure you will discover them eventually whether I want it or not I just hope you accept them.¡¯ I muttered while she was still under my embrace. Then I remembered something that got my attention from the previous conversation.


    ¡°Ari, how did you know to not let clothes get appraised?¡±


    ¡°I felt weird when I wore the clothes as if I got stronger. Moreover, the material on them gives me a feeling that I could slash them with a sword and they would be left unscathed.¡±


    She said while she grabbed a piece of them. I could not see her expression but I assume she is confused about what they are made out of.


    ¡°Ari you are right, even though those clothes are items they are a bit on the special side of things. So you must never let them get appraised it could be troublesome.


    ¡°Yami, what about yours? That cursed ring of yours is¡­¡±


    ¡°Right¡­¡±


    I agreed with Ari, I needed to do something about the [Useless Ring of Insanity] you do not even need to appraise it, it¡¯s constantly leaking out a wicked aura. I decided to take a look at my inventory, and I saw what I was looking for. I took out a single black leather glove for my right hand and put it on. I left the other one in my inventory since only one is needed for the effect to work. It was one of the gloves of [Gloves of the Fiend].


    ¡°Yami, do you really think a glove will solve the issue?¡±


    ¡°It will, it will also block appraisals from items on my items unless they are equal or higher tier than this glove.¡±


    ¡°H-...¡±


    I said with absolute confidence. Based on what Ari told me it would be almost impossible to be appraised with this [Divine] tier glove. Ari wanted to say something but decided to go silent instead, I let her go from my embrace. She seemed to be thinking about something.


    ¡°Yami, where are we going to go?¡±


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t really know but I want to go to the nearest town first¡±


    ¡°Nn¡­¡±


    Ari nodded but she looked unsatisfied with my answer. After all of that talk, the sun was setting and Ari looked tired so I prepared a camp. and started a fire using an item and some wood that Fenri fetched and cooked food for Ari and me, I gave Fenri some more raw meat. After that, I put some cloth on the ground to sleep on.


    ¡°Ari, you should go to bed, it¡¯s getting late.¡±


    ¡°Yami, what about you?¡±


    ¡°I¡­ have things to take care of.¡±


    ¡°Nn.¡±


    Ari just nodded without questioning it, I found it weird since she questions basically anything I do but this was for the better. Ari went to sleep and I went into the forest to talk to a certain someone.


    Alice.


    Hey guys, I thought I would give you a heads up. The next two chapters might feel a bit weird. They may or may not feel forced. But everything is in the name of character development!

 (Side S. 1) A dragon鈥檚 melancholy.

    Alice.


    Hey guys, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, 2600+ words. This chapter is a bit different compared to previous ones. In all honesty, I am kind of nervous about it, but I still hope you guys enjoy it. Added a lame poll for the sake of myself at the end. My writing style might have changed a bit.


    I was sleeping, inside a spacious natural cave with few stalagmites and stalactites, It was a nice place until I was shaken to wake up. I was confused, what kind of existence could wake me up, I am the [Legendary Dragon]. Then I heard it.


    ¡°Hey little girl, are you ok?!¡±


    An adventurer that looked like a holy knight, asked with a concerned voice. I was mad, he who dares disturb my slumber moreover calling me little girl. A mere human, he looked rather big compared to the humans I was used to, however, a human is just a human. There¡¯s only one human I will not look down on. I spoke in rage, however, what came out was not my grandiose voice.


    ¡°Do you know who I am?!¡±


    Instead what came out was a childish girl voice, it sounded as if I was throwing a tantrum. I saw hair cover my eyes, I realized at that moment. I was no longer a dragon, I was a human. I started thinking about what could¡¯ve caused it. Then I recalled that¡­


    [Cat¡¯s charm has been activated. Source: Kuro]


    [Contract link severed.]


    Could it be¡­ I was extremely upset that the only human I ever considered on the same level as me, disappeared, I found it extremely weird, someone as powerful as him just vanished¡­ I realized no matter how strong, humans are just humans, I went into a deep slumber after he vanished, and now I am here.  I was shaken again by the adventurer that looked to be in a panic.


    ¡°Girl, everything will be fine, I don¡¯t know what that wicked dragon did to you, but we will avenge you.¡±


    ¡°Dragon?¡±


    I was bewildered, he suddenly mentioned a dragon, so I asked unconsciously. He spoke with a resolute voice filled with anger and seek for revenge while clenching his fist.  I could feel his bloodlust.


    ¡°Yes, that dragon, the [Legendary Dragon] is the incarnation of all the evil in the world. I the hero will subjugate it, worry not girl I will protect you from him.¡±


    ¡°Are you looking down on me?!¡±


    I could not tolerate this human¡¯s foolishness anymore. Protect me from myself? I was angry. Calling me a little girl? Needing protection? Subjugate me? Bring it on.


    ¡°Girl?!¡±


    ¡°I the [Legendary Dragon Aizen] will not tolerate this.¡±


    ¡°What are you saying? I know you are altered but everything will be ok.¡±


    He kept spouting nonsense, I am the [Legendary Dragon] yet you are trying to console me. Trying to support me? I do not need such things. I have had enough of your foolishness.


    ¡°Die.¡±


    ¡°Woah there!¡±


    I tried to claw him. He stopped me, I was bewildered, at that moment I remembered, I was human too. A fragile existence. The so-called hero stopped me effortlessly. I kept trying to attack him however he stopped me while spouting nonsense like: ¡®That damned dragon, what did he do to you?¡¯ or ¡®Everything will be okay, just calm down.¡¯ He kept looking down on me. I had enough, I might be a human now however my magic will not change. I said while pointing my finger at him.


    ¡°[Ruin]¡±


    ¡°Just what are you-... Arghhh!¡±


    He started holding his chest in pain and collapsed on the ground. I am surprised he even survived that. I stepped on his head, looking down on the insect that dared to disrespect me. I said with the most dignified voice I could muster with this childish body.


    ¡°Do not look down on me.¡±


    ¡°Who are you!¡±


    ¡°I said it didn¡¯t I, now die.¡±


    I killed the so-called hero. Look down on me, pay the price. You should prostrate at my existence and beg for your life. You should pay me the utmost respect you can. You did not. Suffer the consequences. Once a fool, always a fool. I collected a card and a black colored tag from him.


    I went into slumber again. And the same thing happened.


    ¡°Hey, girl are you ok?!¡±


    ¡°You have come to subjugate me?¡±


    ¡°What nonsense are you talking about, everything will be ok, we will kill that wicked dragon for you¡±


    ¡°Die.¡±


    It kept happening over and over again, countless of adventurers kept coming in trying to subjugate me, yet every time they saw me. They all looked down on me, until the very end, trying to protect me. I felt rage dwell inside me. I decided to go outside the cave, wearing some scavenged clothes. When I went out of my cave, everything was different. Like a new world, yet people knew about the being called [Legendary Dragon]. I was confused by this phenomenon. I started walking down a dirt road when I recalled Kuro mentioned something called ¡°status¡±. It was apparently useful for checking information. When I thought about it, it happened.


    Name: Aizen


    Race: ??? [Cat¡¯s Charm (Permanent)]


    LVL.120


    Title(s): [Legendary Dragon] [Summoned Beast] [Class SS Monster] [Catastrophe] (31 others)...


    Karma: -150


    HP: 132981/132981


    MP: 89173/89173


    ST: 64391/64391


    Luck: 5000 [Cat¡¯s Charm (Permanent)]


    STR: 198230/198230


    AGI: 133404/133404


    CC/CD: 300%


    Special Skills: [Cat¡¯s eye] [Translation] [Spatial Box] [???] [???]


    I¡­ I can¡¯t deny this information is useful, but this information is useless at the same time, do you seriously care about stats that much Kuro? I heard humans had these things called classes. I have none, does that make me not human? Well looking at my race displaying ¡®???¡¯, that is most likely the case, at that moment I felt something dull strike me. I was pulled back to my senses. First thing I heard.


    ¡°I am sorry little girl. But I must do this!¡±


    ¡°What is the meaning of this?¡±


    I was confused by the sudden ¡°attack¡±. The veteran looking adventurer and his party were trembling. The adventurer started speaking with a hard expression and voice on the verge of tears.


    ¡°I-I am sorry little girl, however, there has been an assassination request on a delirious psychopath little girl that claims to be the [Legendary Dragon], that person is you.¡±


    ¡°Ah, I see, however, I do not claim to be the [Legendary Dragon]. I am the dragon. Now die¡±


    I killed them effortlessly, this is getting annoying. Just prostate and I will forgive you! Is it really that hard? Well now that I think about it, that person did not do it either huh? However, you are different¡­ Kuro, you showed me, you surpassed every single conception I had of a human being. I wanted to continue serving you. I wanted to continue being with you. Yet you disappeared. I clenched my fist in anger. Just where are you? I decided I needed information. Which means I had to act like a human. That thought sent a shiver down my spine.


    I looted the corpses of the adventurers I just killed and decided to head towards the nearest city. The adventurers had some sort of tags of different colors on their necks and some sort of cards. I also took their coins.The landscape started changing, the plains changed into crops. I could see big imposing walls on the distance. Frankly, everything was too big. When I arrived at the gate the guard looked at me weirdly. I decided to show him the tags of different colored tags that were colored with blood. He was flustered and decided to speak in a bit of a panic.


    ¡°O-oh, I am sorry girl. Must have been rough, you can leave those at the adventurer guild.¡±


    I was annoyed, to say the least but after saying that he spoke again.


    ¡°Welcome to the Kingdom of [Rienia].¡±


    Oh, so there¡¯s a king here? The walls are imposing but it leaves a lot to be desired. I entered without a second thought. The guard seemed to want to say something or move but decided not to. Good. After entering, I found myself in a big spacious circular area that seemed to be the central plaza. It had a lot of businesses. Some looked like inns, some had food. Three, in particular, stood out. They all looked like town halls but had different signs with emblems on them. One had a sword and a shield, one had a smithing hammer and the last one money? I found myself receiving curious stares as well as ones filled with pity from various people, as I was observing the place. I wanted to teach them their place however I already made my decision.


    I headed towards the town hall with the sword and shield. I entered, it was a place filled with a foul stench, I wanted to blow the place off however I came for information. When I entered all of the adventurer¡¯s sent curious stares my way. A guy from a group of 5 people that were drinking stood up. He was 3 or 4 heads taller than me. He started coming towards me until he stopped in front of me. He started speaking with a belittling tone.


    ¡°What do we have here? Missy, I think you got the wrong building.¡±


    I was mad, I tried walking past him at that moment he swiftly placed himself in front of me yet again.


    ¡°Just where do you think you are going.¡±


    You asked for it, I muttered ¡®[Ruin]¡¯, my original spell. A spell that its damage scales depending on the amount of mana used on it. I used one hundred points on this person. He froze for a second and I walked past him and arrived at the counter. The young lady at the counter seemed weirded out by what just happened. When she opened her mouth to speak, she froze looking at what was behind me. And the hall grew noisy. I turned around and saw the drunk man that spoke to me laying on the floor, he was spewing foam from his mouth. Serves you right, you dare stand in my way when you cannot withstand just that? Learn your place.


    I placed the colored tags stained with blood and the cards I got from the adventurers on the counter. Including the one from the so-called hero.


    The receptionist¡¯s eyes grew wide and she started seeing all the tags. When she saw the black colored one, she audibly gulped.


    ¡°I-I will call the guild master.¡±


    She was flustered and left quickly in a hurry to the second floor, a few seconds later I heard a strong voice filled with presence. It was a bald man with beard and mustache that looked in his 30s.


    ¡°What is going on here?¡±


    When his eyes met mine, he realized something. So much so that, he went back into the room where he came from in a hurry, and came back with a red-colored stone that looked like a ruby. He went down the stairs as soon as he could. And stood in front of me. He asked in a nervous voice.


    ¡°G-girl could you please place your hand on this stone?¡±


    I complied, I had no reason to reject him, however, I was annoyed that he treated me as if we were on the same level. The moment I touched that stone I felt a strange sensation of my body, like a slight shiver. I quickly removed my hand because it was unpleasant. After I removed it I realized the man was frozen in place. He stayed like that for a few seconds until a receptionist tugged on his clothes. He was incredibly nervous and started speaking again in a submissive and fragile voice.


    ¡°I-I am sorry for my rude behaviour earlier, I have no idea what got into me. Would you please come this way?¡±


    The guild grew even noisier after that happened. I was slightly happy to have heard him being so respectful. So much so that I followed to where he led me without saying anything. It was a luxurious room, with two couches and a center table in between them. I sat down on one couch that was there. He quickly sat down in front of me, while being visibly nervous he started talking.


    ¡°What can we do for you Mister Dragon.¡±


    ¡°I want to meet the leader. The so-called King or whatever you guys call him.¡±


    He stiffened after hearing that. I want to meet the king or whatever, If he respects me and bows before me I might just be able to restore my former fame or infamy. Whatever it may be, I cannot tolerate people any longer. The man talked again in a stuttering and nervous voice.


    ¡°I-I cannot do-¡±


    ¡°I want to meet the King.¡±


    I interrupted him as he was going to finish his sentence. Saying the same thing again but in my usual dignified voice. He panicked.


    ¡°Right away!¡±


    He left the room in a hurry and I did not hear from anyone or anything. I was alone in the room, I noticed the ruby stone thing was on the table, I grabbed it. I did not feel strange anymore when it touched the table as I was holding it. Something appeared in my mind.


    [Fancy table: Handcrafted by a renown carpenter, every noble wants one.]


    So it was an appraisal. ¡®How useless¡­¡¯ I muttered It was useless for me at least. When Kuro did his thing. I acquired the skill called [Cat¡¯s eye] which did the same thing. I might have turned into a girl but I do not hate him. Being a girl or a dragon I am still the [Legendary Dragon] after all. I waited patiently for the man to come back. A few hours later I decided to stand up, even my patience has limits. When I got up, the guild grew fussy, I headed towards the door. Suddenly the door opened. There stood a visibly nervous old man, he was emitting an aura of royalty wearing luxurious clothes and a crown. It was the king, he was surrounded by guards that gave the sense of ¡®I am strong¡¯. When the king looked at me. His expression quickly changed from wariness to rage. He turned towards the man from before. The guildmaster.


    ¡°Is this some kind of joke?! You told me it was the [Legendary Dragon], yet all I see is a pitiful and frail small girl!¡±


    ¡°Pitiful and frail?¡±


    I asked, in a dead cold voice. I was mad, who do you think you are looking down on? The guildmaster noticed that the king encouraged my wrath and prostrated himself begging for forgiveness of his foolish king.


    ¡°Yes, pitiful and frail. I am leaving, you are wasting my time with distasteful jokes, I will spare your life for now.¡±


    Spare? Who exactly is going to spare who? I was boiling with rage, I could not be stopped anymore. That day the Kingdom of [Rienia] was erased from the map leaving behind a single man. I continued my journey while complaining. ¡®I will spare your life for now.¡¯ Huh? Who do you think you are to tell me that, well it doesn¡¯t matter now that you are dead.


    [Title unlocked: Kingdom destroyer]


    You have destroyed a kingdom¡­ Congratulations?


    I continued on my journey, the first kingdom. Then the second¡­ The third... I kept hearing stories about the world-renowned craftsman in my travels. I realized. Kuro if they saw you, no matter how ridiculous you look, they would recognize you the moment they saw your crafting.


    25 years later. My karma had reached -400. I am no [Legendary Dragon] at least not anymore. No matter how dignified I act, how much regality I have. Humans are foolish but they made me understand that, no matter how many of them I kill, no matter how much terror I infuse into them. I am no dragon in their eyes. I am just a little girl. Kuro I don¡¯t know where you are. But I don¡¯t think I can continue serving you. Not in this state.


    Alice.


    The chapter was posted from phone, let me know if you see anything weird. Fun fact, this chapter was supposed to be released after chapter 9. However, I think this is for the better. Let me know if you noticed the writing change. If you didn''t well... In all honesty, it''s not very noticeable.

 (Chpt. 8) Dragon.

    Alice.


    I started wandering into the forest alone. It was a weird experience yet peaceful, I could only hear the rustling from the trees, the wind and my footsteps, I had to find the right place to do this.


    It took me a bit of walking and wandering around but I finally arrived at a suitable place. It was a part of the forest next to a mountain that had no trees, the moon was shimmering so brightly that it coated the entire forest with its dim silver light, the stars shined brightly like jewels. It was a beautiful sight.


    ¡°Shall we get started then?¡±


    I did not know if this was going to work but it was something I had to do. I started chanting.


    ¡°O, Legendary Dragon, hear my call¡­¡±


    Why do I even have to do this! Wait... I remember, chanting was just for the sake of roleplaying¡­ I decided to call upon him again with a more sophisticated call.


    ¡°I [Summon] thee, come forth Trash Dragon I call upon you!¡±


    ¡®Did it work?¡¯ As I was thinking that, the leaves started rustling and the air started to get turbulent, a silver light emerged from the ground and started tracing a circle, it kept tracing until it was a circle with complex patterns on the center and filled with runes. A magic circle. When it finished the area was filled with dust and I could no longer see.


    ¡°Who do you call trash dragon? You trash craftsman!¡±


    I heard an angry childish voice?! Moreover, she called my crafting trash¡­ As the dust cleared I could see a figure but it wasn¡¯t the legendary dragon. When we saw each other both of our eyes widened. It was a girl just a bit shorter than me, with silver hair that reached past her cheeks and amber eyes that seemed to be brimming with knowledge, she was wearing something that looked like a tattered potato bag? For some reason, she had the same aura as Aizen. However, she was a girl.


    ¡°¡±eh.¡±¡±


    We both let out stupid voices, where did this kid come from? Why does she seem so familiar? Ahhh, I have so many questions! As if reading my mind we both spoke at the same time.


    ¡°¡±Who are you?¡±¡±


    We both just stopped looking at each other it seems like she also deduced we won¡¯t get anywhere like this, I went into deep thought. If I only have one summoned beast contracted, It should¡¯ve summoned said beast, everything was fine until a young girl appeared that looks reasonably powerful. That must be it!


    ¡°You are a hero aren¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°Are you stupid?¡±


    She said with an incredibly cold voice. I went into deep thought again. Wait... Summoned beast? Same aura? Same trash personality? Yeah, that must be it, probably¡­ As I was about to speak. She opened her mouth and said.


    ¡°What¡¯s with that appearance?¡±


    She said while trying to hold her laughter.


    ¡°Should you really be the one talking when you look like that?¡±


    I rolled my eyes, she stiffened and her expression turned into one of melancholy for a second. At least we confirmed each other¡¯s identities. We both look ridiculous I think there¡¯s no point in insulting each other about appearances, right now. more importantly¡­


    ¡°So why did you call for me?¡±


    As expected of the legendary dragon, knowing that I wanted something. ¡®Nn.¡¯ I nodded inside my head.


    ¡°I wanted to ask you about this world¡±


    As I was finishing my sentence Aizen spoke.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡±


    I let out another ¡®eh¡¯ again, how is this possible, even the legendary dragon doesn¡¯t know? ¡®Huh, I am not looking forward into the future just based on the little I know.¡¯


    ¡°So Aizen, what are you going to do now? Can you turn back into a dragon?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what I am going to do, and no I can¡¯t, I do retain my level and power for some reason.¡±


    Aizen answered all of my questions with a dignified voice, but I could hear a melancholic tone sink into it sometimes, I could tell a lot happened, I did not want to pry about it so I decided to ask Aizen something that might help.


    ¡°Want to come with us?¡±


    Aizen. Just looked at me with a blank expression. Something was wrong, I wanted to ask about it but first I had to ask something that had been bothering me since I met Aizen again.


    Alice.


    Hey guys, sorry for the inconsistent chapter lengths. I will try to make them above 1k words in the near future. And yes double release tomorrow of chapter. 9 and 9.5, wait 9.5? I wonder what happened?

 (Chpt. 9) Family.

    Alice.


    I wanted to know, why Aizen was a girl, I decided to ask. It has been bothering me since I met her again.


    ¡°Hey, Aizen why are you a girl now?¡¯


    ¡°Because of you¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡±


    Aizen answered with a cold voice while having an empty expression. I let out yet another stupid voice, how does this happen? What could I have done to turn Aizen into a girl?!  When Aizen heard my stupid voice, her face quickly changed, she started talking with visible anger and resentment.


    ¡°Since you consumed that item!¡±


    My expression turned blank for a second while I was thinking ¡®How does the item affect Aizen.¡¯ As if reading my mind Aizen answered.


    ¡°I was affected because of the contract we made.¡±


    ¡°What does that have to do with the contract?¡±


    That question seemed to have fueled her anger. Aizen snapped.


    ¡°Are you stupid?! To summon something you form a contract, in other words, you are linked, that is why you can know how your summoned beast is doing without looking at it! For us beasts, contracts are something sacred. I basically gave you my life, yet...¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°You show up, decades later and pretend everything is fine?! Just what is wrong with you...¡±


    Aizen''s voice cracked at the end of her sentence. I was speechless, this is all my fault... Under normal circumstances, it would not affect him, game or not. But what about this whole situation is normal? ¡®Decades later.¡¯ I realized at that moment what that meant... Aizen¡¯s rage settled down. She had gone through a lot and yet I did not do anything... I felt my chest cramp from the sudden realization. Aizen sat down under a tree while looking at the ground with an empty look and lifeless eyes. She started drawing things on the dirt with her finger.


    ¡°You know, Kuro¡­¡±


    Aizen spoke while looking at the ground with a hollow and distant voice, devoid of any emotions, no dignity, no pride, no loyalty, only emptiness. Just a husk of her former self. A broken person.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I can come with you.¡±


    I wanted her to come, but I could not bring myself to ask her again. Do I even have the right to ask her? I started thinking and Aizen seemed to want to say something but did not, after some time of silence, Aizen suddenly said with a tone full of regret.


    ¡°I want to end our contract.¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    My eyes widened. Why would she want to end our contract? No what am I even thinking, it¡¯s obvious why she would want to end it. I do not even deserve to have contracts. I started looking at the sky with a difficult expression while thinking about how to apologize. Aizen realized this and continued speaking.


    ¡°Kuro, It¡¯s not you, it¡¯s me.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean it¡¯s not me? What could make it you?!¡±


    I was agitated. What does she even mean? Not me? I did not do anything and left her alone. Aizen turned into a girl because of me, yet¡­ I do not understand¡­ Aizen started speaking with a melancholic voice.


    ¡°Kuro, I want to continue serving you, however, my feelings changed over time... I realized...¡±


    Aizen paused. She had a hard time talking, I don¡¯t get it, I had so many questions to ask but the most important one.


    ¡°If you want to continue serving me, then why?¡±


    Aizen froze she stopped aimlessly drawing on the ground, after a few seconds I could see tears falling on the ground. Aizen started speaking again with a voice I have never heard before. It was a frail and quiet one.


    ¡°You know Kuro¡­ In all these years I realized¡­ I am no [Legendary Dragon] it¡¯s just a dignified appearance... Right now, I am just a pitiful girl with nowhere to go.¡±


    ¡°So what?¡±


    Aizen froze and looked up to see me, Aizen had an expression filled with regret and tears flowing out from her eyes.


    Ah, I see how it is. Aizen you need to understand, You are much more than just a dragon, now that you are a no longer a dragon, you think you are not worth anything but you are worth to me much more than just a dragon, especially now. You are the only one I can rely on. I do not know what you went through, however, I will listen to your experiences and you will listen to mine. My companion, and now my friend¡­


    I spoke with a serious tone.


    ¡°So you want to end the contract?¡±


    Aizen nodded with a confused expression. While wiping her tears.


    ¡°Very well, I will accept however you must make a promise.¡±


    ¡°... A promise?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, a promise.¡±


    ¡°Let me make a promise then.¡±


    She was taken aback by my sudden request but she accepted as if that was her only choice, how foolish. There¡¯s only one choice¡­ Aizen you will come with me.


    "Before that."


    Aizen was bewildered by my words as if I had forgotten what all of this was about.


    "Before that?"


    I had to confirm something first. Does she just want to leave it at that? End the contract with me and call it a day?


    "Aizen are you really ok with this?"


    Aizen froze, her face was filled with more sadness and regret than before, she tried her best to stay composed but she was trembling, her voice was no exception to this.


    "I-I am okay with this"


    "I am not."


    I declared, how could I ever be okay with this? Aizen looked at me with eyes questioning what I meant by that. Aizen, I will make you understand.


    ¡°Aizen, I will end our contract, however, I want you to come with me, I need you. Not because you are the legendary dragon. I need you. I need Aizen."


    Aizen¡¯s eyes widened in surprise, after a second or two, her usual eyes returned and her expression changed to one with a faint smile, but something was wrong. Her expression quickly changed to one of insecurity and doubt. She stood up from the tree she was under and started wiping her tears with her arm. She started speaking, with insecurity.


    ¡°Are you really fine with me?¡±


    I answered instantly full of conviction and confidence.


    ¡°Of course, is that really a question? You are the only one I can rely on, moreover, you are my companion and now my friend.¡±


    She muttered something. Her face quickly changed to one of pure happiness as if she had come to a realization. She was crying. I decided to ask even If I knew the answer.


    ¡°Do you accept?¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡±


    She said full of joy and enthusiasm.


    Well, let¡¯s get started¡­ Now that I think about it, I do not know how to end the contract with Aizen. She saw my confused face and started talking.


    ¡°To end the contract we just need to have each other¡¯s consent.¡±


    Huh? That¡¯s pretty simple. Well then, I agree to end the contract with my summon the [Legendary Dragon Aizen]. As I finished thinking that, I felt a jolt in my spine. It made me shiver, Aizen also looked stiff so I guess that¡¯s the end of it.


    [You have ended your contract with the Legendary Dragon Aizen.]


    ¡°Well let us start again¡­ My name is Yami, would you like to be my friend? ¡±


    I said with a smile while holding my hand towards Aizen, she seemed to be wondering about something and asked.


    ¡°Why not Kuro?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to be Kuro anymore, it seems problematic.¡±


    Aizen nodded as if understanding. I mean seriously, I would probably be chased by the church so I can make them items or something, It¡¯s not something I want to happen. As I was thinking.


    [Your main name cannot be removed.]


    I made a wry smile after that happened. Aizen started speaking.


    ¡°Let''s be friends.¡±


    She said with her usual dignified voice, and shook my hand, at that moment.


    [Error: Contract failed. Can only form a contract with a beast.]


    ¡°¡±eh.¡±¡±


    We both let out stupid voices in unison, we just looked at each other wondering what happened. We did not even try to make a contract. As we were thinking, the system voice resounded in my head again.


    [Yami becomes your main name.]


    [Requirements met. Kuro becomes your family name.]


    [New family member: Aizen.]


    [Title unlocked: Family]:


    You have created a family. Isn¡¯t that wonderful?


    We both looked at each other and decided to not say anything, ¡¯Looks like she also heard something similar.¡¯ I muttered, however Aizen and I could tell, we formed a contract, it was just a different type of contract¡­


    Alice.


    Hey guys, this is a bit different compared to the slice of life chapters. I am not very good at expressing character emotions so, I made another lame poll to feel better about myself. EDIT: Fixed paragraph spacing.

 (Chpt. 9.5) A dragon鈥檚 doubts.

    I was sleeping in a desolate forest laying on the grass. When I heard it.


    [Contract link re-established]


    I forcefully woke up, startled from what I just heard. Could it be? How long has it been since I got a similar message? I could not believe this happened, I changed from laying down to sitting. I decided to try and feel our link. It was there. How long had it been? 30 years? I do not remember anymore.


    ¡°So it¡¯s morning huh?¡±


    I said with an indifferent voice. However, nothing else happened after that. I waited and waited. The sun settled and the night came. When I was about to sleep it happened.


    ¡®O, Legendary Dragon, hear my call¡­¡¯ It was a faint young female voice. However, she stopped her dumb chant. Then I heard another ridiculous chant with more willpower and it was way clearer.


    ¡°I [Summon] thee, come forth Trash Dragon I call upon you!¡±


    I was teleported. So I was summoned, however, I was mad. I might not call myself the Legendary Dragon anymore. However, there was only one person that would address me like that and survive. I retorted instinctively.


    ¡°Who do you call trash dragon? You trash craftsman!¡±


    I shouted with anger. However, I could not see anything because the whole area was filled with dust. It started to clear and I saw a young girl. It was not Kuro, my eyes widened.


    She was just a bit taller than me, white hair, heterochromatic eyes. She looked kind of ridiculous if I say so myself.


    ¡°¡±eh.¡±¡±


    We both let out stupid voices. How did this child summon me? I wonder. I spoke the first thing that came to mind.


    ¡°¡±Who are you?¡±¡±


    We spoke at the same time asking the same thing. We won¡¯t get anywhere with this. Someone summoned me, you can only summon if you have a contract with the creature. That must mean. Before I could speak the young girl spoke with a bright voice.


    ¡°You are a hero, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°Are you stupid?¡±


    I asked, genuinely wondering if she was okay. However, I realized. Only one person could be this stupid. I asked with a teasing tone trying to hold my laughter.


    ¡°What¡¯s with that appearance?¡±


    ¡°Should you really be the one talking when you look like that?¡±


    She retorted fairly quickly. I stiffened, she is right. I look like a pitiful little girl. All of those things happened, yet, I am no dragon. How sad is that... Enough with useless thoughts. I decided to ask Kuro.


    ¡°So why did you call for me?¡±


    She paused for a second as if having an internal monologue, I saw her face change into one with a proud look and then she spoke.


    ¡°I wanted to ask you about this world.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡±


    I answered the question almost instantly, which made Kuro make another stupid sound. Kuro seemed to have reached a conclusion, and asked me.


    ¡°So Aizen, what are you going to do now? Can you turn back into a dragon?¡±


    Going for the hard questions huh? Might as well tell you now. I spoke trying to keep my dignified voice but sometimes my melancholic tone would sink into it.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what I am going to do, and no I can¡¯t, I do retain my level and power for some reason.¡±


    I saw Kuro start thinking for a second.


    ¡°Want to come with us?¡±


    Kuro asked out of nowhere. I looked at her with a blank expression. Is that some kind of joke? It¡¯s not even funny. Also, who is ''us''? Then she asked out of nowhere.


    ¡°Hey, Aizen why are you a girl now?¡¯


    ¡°Because of you¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡±


    After I answered with an uninterested voice. She let out a stupid noise yet again. I was mad. What do you mean by ¡®eh?¡¯. Are you fucking retarded?! I started speaking with rage and resentment.


    ¡°Since you consumed that item!¡±


    When she listened to that. Kuro started thinking, are you seriously this stupid?! It¡¯s the contract.


    ¡°I was affected because of the contract we made.¡±


    ¡°What does that have to do with the contract?¡±


    Kuro asked. What do you mean? Are you serious¡­ I was boiling at this point.


    ¡°Are you stupid?! To summon something you form a contract, in other words, you are linked, that is why you can know how your summoned beast is doing without looking at it! For us beasts, contracts are something sacred. I basically gave you my life, yet...¡±


    ¡®I gave you my life, yet you threw it away.¡¯ I wanted to say that but I couldn¡¯t. I could not keep appearances anymore.


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°You show up, decades later and pretend everything is fine?! Just what is wrong with you...¡±


    I ended with a cracked and pitiful voice. My rage subsided, I just walked towards a tree and sat under it, while drawing aimlessly on the ground with my finger. I spoke, without trying to be dignified, without trying to be a dragon, just a girl.


    ¡°You know Kuro¡­ I don¡¯t think I can come with you.¡±


    Kuro I am sorry, but I must do this. It¡¯s for the best for both of us. I spoke with a tone full of regret.


    ¡°I want to end our contract.¡±


    Kuro¡¯s face turned difficult and started looking at the sky while thinking. I decided to try to say something to not make her upset.


    ¡°Kuro, It¡¯s not you, it¡¯s me.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean it¡¯s not me? What could make it you?!¡±


    However, she was agitated instead. Ahh, now I¡¯ve done it. I guess I will tell you.


    ¡°Kuro, I want to continue serving you, however, my feelings changed over time... I realized...¡±


    I spoke with a tone filled with melancholy. I could not finish my sentence. At that moment Kuro asked.


    ¡°If you want to continue serving me, then why?¡±


    I froze. I stopped drawing on the ground. Do you seriously not get it? I was crying, I spoke with all the honesty I could with a voice he has never heard before. My voice, a frail and quiet voice.


    ¡°You know Kuro¡­ In all these years I realized¡­ I am no [Legendary Dragon] it¡¯s just a dignified appearance... Right now, I am just a pitiful girl with nowhere to go.¡±


    ¡°So what?¡±


    Kuro instantly replied. I froze again. ¡®So what?¡¯ what could she even mean? I looked up to see her. When she saw me, Kuro realized something. She spoke with a serious tone.


    ¡°So you want to end our contract?¡±


    I nodded with a confused expression.


    ¡°Very well, I will accept however you must make a promise.¡±


    I paused for a second. What could she be planning? Well, it does not matter anymore.


    ¡°A promise?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, a promise.¡±


    I agreed because it was my only choice.


    ¡°Let me make a promise then.¡±


    "Before that."


    ¡°Before that?¡±


    I was confused. Did Kuro forget what she just said? She asked a question.


    "Aizen are you really okay with this?"


    I froze, I was feeling more sadness than ever. ¡®I want to be with you. Please take me with you.¡¯ That¡¯s what I wanted to say. Instead, I started trembling and spoke with a trembling voice.


    "I-I am okay with this"


    This is painful, but it is something I have decided and something I must do. Kuro spoke instantly after I said it.


    "I am not."


    What does she mean? I looked at her wondering what could it mean? I was confused. She started speaking as if understanding what I was thinking.


    ¡°Aizen, I will end our contract, however, I want you to come with me, I need you. Not because you are the legendary dragon. I need you. I need Aizen."


    The moment I heard that. My eyes widened, I had a faint smile on my face. I was happy, I got up from the tree and started wiping my tears.  ¡®Is she serious?¡¯, ¡®There¡¯s no way.¡¯ Those thoughts started to plagued my mind, I spoke with insecurity. I had to know.


    ¡°Are you really fine with me?¡±


    ¡°Of course, is that really a question? You are the only one I can rely on, moreover, you are my companion and now my friend.¡±


    The moment I heard that all of my doubts cleared. ¡®Ah, I see that¡¯s how it was. I don''t need to be a dragon, I just need to be me.¡¯ I started crying from the realization, I was happy that I got it all wrong. Kuro asked.


    ¡°Do you accept?¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡±


    I instantly agreed with joy and enthusiasm. I remembered the contract, was it? Kuro had a confused face. I started speaking.


    ¡°To end the contract we just need to have each other¡¯s consent.¡±


    Kuro started thinking, I went stiff at that moment. I felt a jolt, it was very unpleasant. I became stiff from it. I heard the thing called ¡®System voice¡¯ after that.


    [You have ended your contract with your contractor Kuro.]


    [Title lost: Summoned Beast]


    ¡°Well let us start again¡­ My name is Yami, would you like to be my friend? ¡±


    Kuro said with a smile while holding her hand towards me. However why not Kuro? I had to ask.


    ¡°Why not Kuro?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to be Kuro anymore, it seems problematic.¡±


    I instantly nodded, based on everything I heard, it does seem problematic. Kuro made a wry smile for a reason I could not comprehend. I decided to speak with my dignified voice and shook her hand.


    ¡°Let¡¯s be friends.¡±


    At that moment.


    [Error: Contract failed. Can only form a contract with a beast.]


    ¡°¡±eh.¡±¡±


    We both let out stupid voices at the same time. I looked at her wondering what happened, and she looked at me wondering what happened. We did not even try to make a contract. Then I heard the voice again.


    [You have joined a family.]


    [Kuro becomes your family name.]


    [Title unlocked: Family]


    You have created a family, isn¡¯t that wonderful?


    We both looked at each other and did not say anything.


    Looks like we formed a contract, it was just a different type.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 10) Karma.

    Alice.


    It was still the middle of the night, the moon was shining brightly. We stood there, just wondering what to say. When I looked at Aizen, I was reminded, that she had torn down clothes. I did not notice before, her grandiose aura was not the same. Aizen was clad in some wicked energy, It was like she was the embodiment of darkness and evil of the world, however, I did not even flinch for some reason. I decided to ask the first thing that came to mind regarding the cause of the aura.


    ¡°Aizen what is your karma?¡±


    ¡°-400¡­¡±


    My eyes went wide open, Aizen seemed to be flustered after giving the answer. How do you even reach that level normally? A lot must have happened. Aizen was fidgeting a lot, waiting for my reaction or something. My karma is way worse, what can I say?  I just looked at Aizen and spoke.


    ¡°Well, we need to get rid of that wicked aura of yours.¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    Aizen was visibly perplexed by my lack of reaction, in the meantime, I took the other [Glove of the Fiend] and gave it to Aizen. She was confused.


    ¡°What¡¯s this glove for?¡±


    ¡°It stops appraisals on the items I am about to give you.¡±


    She seemed to understand the value of items in this world. She silently accepted the glove. And wrapped it around her arm like if it was a bracelet? It ended up looking like a black leather bracelet. I wanted to say something but it looked the item¡¯s effect still worked, I decided to not say anything.  I took out another ring from my inventory. It was a [Divine] grade item! That¡¯s right. It was [Useless Ring of Insanity v1] or rather known as [Failure of Insanity]. It did exactly the same as the other version except this one is lower grade. Aizen also took the ring. And asked in a confused voice.


    ¡°What¡¯s this ring for?¡±


    ¡°It hides your aura.¡±


    ¡°Do we even need to hide our aura.¡±


    Ah, why are you sometimes like this? I thought you were no longer this proud, old habits die hard I guess. I decided to show Aizen instead of trying to argue. I took off my glove and when she saw my ring, she audibly gulped. I took off my ring. Aizen started trembling and spoke in a nervous and quiet voice.


    ¡°K-... Y-Yami, just what is your karma.¡±


    ¡°-500.¡±


    Aizen¡¯s eyes widened in surprise, I decided to put my ring and glove back on. Aizen seemed to understand why the ring I gave her was necessary. Aizen silently put [Failure of Insanity] on her left hand. The ring turned obsidian black with thin golden stripes. She looked at it and nodded while looking at her hand as if acknowledging the ring. I decided to speak since she was silent.


    ¡°Anyways, we can¡¯t go to towns while people think we are going to kill them all.¡±


    ¡°Nn.¡±


    She silently nodded. I took out a blue long coat, black boots and pants for Aizen. It was the [Dandelion] armor set. The only [Relic] tier set I ever got from monster drops. It looked pretty bland. As soon as Aizen saw them she recognized them and spoke.


    ¡°Are you sure you want to give me this?¡±


    ¡°I cannot give this to anyone else, besides if the church decides to hunt me at least you will be able to help.¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    She wanted to retort to that but couldn¡¯t. She silently put on all of the things I gave her. I turned around while she was changing because regardless of body I was still a gentleman. When she was done, she looked rather dignified. ¡®Befitting the ex [Legendary Dragon]¡¯. ¡®Nn.¡¯ I nodded inside my head acknowledging how her aura was somewhat back.


    ¡°Hey, Yami I have been meaning to ask this but¡­ When you asked me if I wanted to come with you, you said ¡®us¡¯. Who is ¡®us¡¯?¡±


    ¡°Ah.¡±


    I proceeded to explain the whole situation to Aizen about Ari, that she was a slave, and I decided to take care of her. Aizen seemed fairly understanding about the situation. It made me wonder, just how much she changed. I decided to ask, in a teasing tone.


    ¡°Aizen, do you still kill people if they don¡¯t prostrate and beg for forgiveness?¡±


    I said so while poking at her, however, she maintained a solemn expression and answered with an indifferent voice.


    ¡°No, I am just a normal girl, why should they do that?¡±


    ¡°O-Oh, looks like you changed a lot.¡±


    Aizen had a proud look hearing my words. I find it kind of weird that she has that mentality now. However, it is for the better... I am perplexed she believes that, yet her peerless elegance and regality are still there. After a few seconds of silence, Aizen spoke in a serious tone.


    ¡°Yami, does the Ari girl know about you.¡±


    ¡°No she doesn¡¯t, keep it a secret.¡±


    ¡°Nn.¡±


    Aizen nodded understanding what I wanted. We decided to head back to the lake where Fenri and Ari were sleeping. Aizen seemed very pleased seeing the scenery, I do not blame her. It was a leafy forest, the air was clear, the moon shined brightly with its silver light. The leaves rustled delicately because of the gentle wind. When we arrived at the camp. Aizen looked at Ari and just said.


    ¡°Well, she is pretty cute.¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    Are you joking? Can¡¯t you at least say something more appropriate? ¡®sigh¡¯ We laid on the floor, I decided to use [Cat¡¯s eye] on Aizen since it bypasses, the [Glove of the Fiend]. Aizen shivered the moment I used the skill. What I saw made me gulp.


    Name: Aizen


    Family: Kuro


    Race: ??? [Cat¡¯s Charm (Permanent)]


    LVL.120


    Title(s): [Legendary Dragon] [Class SS Monster] [Catastrophe] [Kingdom destroyer] (32 others)...


    Karma: -400


    HP: 132981/132981(+ 50%)


    MP: 89173/89173(+ 50%)


    ST: 64391/64391(+ 50%)


    Luck: 5000 [Cat¡¯s Charm (Permanent)]


    STR: 198230/198230(+ 50%)


    AGI: 133404/133404(+ 50%)


    CC/CD: 300%(+ 50%)


    Special Skills: [Cat¡¯s eye] [Translation] [Spatial Box] [???] [???]


    Displaying a lot of ¡®???¡¯ even though I technically should be able to see everything? No classes? And her race is ¡®???¡¯. Huh? Moreover was she always this strong? Well, it only makes sense. If I think about it objectively. I would be on the weaker side of things if it weren¡¯t for [Relic] items. At that moment Aizen turned to me with a dead-serious expression and said in a quiet but firm toned voice.


    ¡°Do not use that skill again on me.¡±


    ¡°...Nn.¡±


    I nodded. ¡®How could she tell I used the skill?¡¯ I thought about it for a few seconds and remembered she shivered. ''Huh, I wonder what happens if I use it on myself?'' After thinking that, I used the skill on my hand out of curiosity. at that moment I felt an extremely weird sensation, it was unpleasant. ''Yeah, that does feel awful.'' I muttered agreeing with the thought of having the skill used on me. As I was thinking that. My eyelids were getting heavy and my vision was turning blurry until I could not keep thinking straight anymore. I fell asleep shortly after.


    Alice.


    Author''s explanation corner 4:


    This is an edit: Family is displayed separate to name, think of it as a generic isekai setting in middle ages. Only nobles have family names, therefore it is in a different section in status and not next to the name.

 (Chpt. 11) Sister?

    Alice.


    It was early morning, I could hear the wind and water flowing when suddenly I was shaken. I heard a childish panicked voice however she was trying to be quiet at the same time. it was weird. I was woken up. It was Ari.


    ¡°Yami, Yami!¡±


    ¡°... Y-yes?¡±


    I asked in a confused voice. I was literally just woken up, I could not process anything Ari looked at me with a difficult face as if saying ¡®Isn¡¯t it obvious?!¡¯ I am sorry Ari I do not understand, I apologized in my mind. Ari seemed to have picked up that I did not understand what she meant and started pointing at a lump on the ground. It was Aizen.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    Aizen was sleeping like a cat, she was pretty cute, but ¡®You are human now, behave like one!¡¯. I reprimanded her inside my head. ¡®sigh¡¯ How do I go about this. I turned to Ari. And addressed her in a serious tone.


    ¡°Ari.¡±


    ¡°Yes?!¡±


    She was clearly flustered. However, at that moment I felt a hand on my shoulder it was Aizen. Ari became even more nervous when she saw her. However, she quickly became at ease when Aizen spoke in a gentle and soft voice.


    ¡°Hi, Ari was it? My name is Aizen. Yami told me a lot about you, pleased to meet you.~¡±


    I looked at Aizen with an expression of disbelief. Who are you? What did you do to my dragon? I wanted to retort in so many ways but I decided to keep my mouth shut. While Ari was no longer nervous she had a difficult expression. She opened her mouth and declared with a childish voice.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know who you are, but Yami is mine!¡±


    She then proceeded to stick her tongue out. I was flustered I thought Aizen would react like something along the lines of: ¡®Foolish mortal, you have made your last mistake.¡¯ or ¡®You dare disrespect me?! Die!¡¯. However, Aizen just scratched her head with a perplexed expression. And whispered to my ear.


    ¡°Hey, Kuro. Can¡¯t you like introduce me or something.¡±


    ¡°A-ah yes¡­¡±


    So, she really changed huh? I turned towards Ari and looked her dead in the eyes. She flinched a little bit by that. I started speaking with a serious tone while gesturing with my hand to where Aizen was, like if I was selling a product or something.


    ¡°Ari, this is Aizen, she will be traveling with us from now on.¡±


    ¡°Eh.¡±


    Ari let out a stupid voice and glanced towards Aizen with a difficult expression. She seemed mad or upset, I could not tell. She pointed her finger towards Aizen and said full of jealousy.


    ¡°What¡¯s your relationship with Yami?¡±


    Aizen flinched and made a difficult expression. She started scratching her head again thinking of what to say, then she suddenly turned her head towards me as if saying ¡®Should I say it?¡¯ I just nodded. Aizen spoke with a happy tone.


    ¡°We are family.¡±


    ¡°eh¡­¡±


    Ari was completely taken aback by this. She looked at me as to confirm to which I simply nodded. She completely froze, ¡®Ari.exe has stopped working.¡¯ I made a lame joke inside my head. Ari recovered after a few seconds and went up to Aizen. Aizen was flustered by this however she did not move. Ari was checking her hands and all she saw was the black with gold ring. Ari began speaking with a confused voice and expression.


    ¡°A-Aizen, you are not a beastkin?¡±


    Aizen was perplexed to see this and glanced at me scanning my entire body. She looked even more confused. Ari seemed to have noticed this and ran over to me in a hurry and took the [Disguise] ring from my hand. My ears and tail came out from inside my body. I shivered from the strange sensation that I will not ever get used to. Aizen looked at me with wide-open eyes.


    ¡°Ahahaha¡­ So that¡¯s how it was!¡±


    She seemed to have gotten a sudden realization. Ari and I were perplexed by this. Aizen showed us her ears. They were slightly pointy, Ari was shocked and spoke instantly in a voice of the same nature.


    ¡°Half-elf?!¡±


    Ari froze again. Aizen came over to me and started whispering in a happy tone. She also gave me back my ring, she seemed to have gotten a hold of it somehow.


    ¡°You see Kuro, I became something like a mixed dragon and human. I did not understand it at first, but looking at you I realize now.¡±


    Ah, so that¡¯s how it was... I still don''t get it! Ari was still frozen and started muttering but I could somewhat hear it. She was saying something like ¡®Beastkin and half-elf in the same family, how is this possible.¡¯ She seemed to have reached a conclusion and turned to us. She spoke in a happy tone.


    ¡°So you and Yami are sisters?¡±


    ¡°¡±Eh.¡±¡±


    We both let out stupid noises. However, Ari seemed to misunderstand something and continued by asking in an excited voice.


    ¡°So, so, who is the older one?!¡±


    Ari looked like she already knew the answer however Aizen made an evil smile as if enjoying this and pointed towards me. Ari¡¯s eyes grew wide but seemed incredibly happy. However, she looked at me with a reproachful look, and started speaking in an angry voice containing a bit of excitement?


    ¡°Yami, why did you not tell me you had a little sister?!¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    I just stayed silent. I didn''t even know I had a sister myself?! How do I even tell you about it! I looked at Aizen with cold eyes, she stiffened and made a wry smile. I decided to try my best to apologize to Ari.


    ¡°Ari I am sorry.¡±


    It was an awful attempt at an apology. However, Ari just nodded in satisfaction after hearing it and turned around. ¡®I guess she can be quite childish too. Huh?¡¯ I muttered. I saw Ari bombarding Aizen with questions such as: ¡®How did you meet Yami?¡¯. Aizen looked at me asking for help but I just sneered. She did not answer most of the questions, then I heard a troublesome question.


    ¡°Aizen, what is your class. Yami is a tamer and she is really amazing!¡±


    Aizen looked troubled and glanced at me. I made a cross with my arms as if saying ¡®Don¡¯t say anything troublesome¡¯ She picked up and that and answered with her usual dignified voice.


    ¡°Mage.¡±


    Ari¡¯s eyes sparkled and made another question full of excitement.


    ¡°What¡¯s your level?!¡±


    Aizen just looked at me and nodded, then spoke while looking at Ari with the same tone.


    ¡°Level 20.¡±


    Ari¡¯s eyes grew wide. She started praising Aizen. Aizen had a smug look on her face basically saying ¡®Praise me more.¡¯ Ari seemed to stop for a moment as if realizing something but I paid it no mind. Looks like Aizen knows what is considered ¡°normal¡± in this world, but level 20 is incredibly low huh. I better ask her later. However, right now I want to hit that god damn dragon! Coaxing a little girl into praising her.


    Alice.

 (Side S. 2) Meeting death.

    Alice.


    Everything was dark, I could not see anything, I was scared. What happened? I heard a metallic click at that moment, I felt like I was being asphyxiated. I heard some words I did not understand then... A sharp pain ran through my heart, at that moment, I heard a cold voice that sent a chill down my spine.


    ¡°It¡¯s complete now.¡±


    I did not hear anything else, I fainted shortly after. The next thing I remember is waking up in a carriage. I could see again. What I saw was not what I was expecting¡­ It was a merchant carriage, a slave merchant carriage. I could see beastkin, elves. I was there. I looked down, I was wearing tattered clothes and I was incredibly dirty. I had a slave collar on, I started recalling past events.


    I was in the capital walking, and everything turned dark¡­ ¡®Huh, how?¡¯ I muttered, however, it was useless to even think about it because of the situation I was in. I did not panic, rather I could not panic. I was feeling incredibly tired. The slave merchant looked like a gentleman, however, there was something shady about him. He did not ever treat me like a slave for some reason. At least not as bad as the other slaves, for some reason, I felt like he had something special for me.


    As I traveled as a slave, I heard useful information. However, while it was useful, the information I had was already vast enough to not worry about it. One day as I was sitting down looking at the carriage¡¯s ground with an empty expression like I always did. I then heard a noise, I knew the merchant had some adventurers. I started hearing swords clashing, a bandit went into the carriage and tried to drag a slave. The slave resisted and got killed. One after another they were being killed, at that moment I felt a chill run down my spine. As if I was going to die at any moment. I started trembling, to my surprise the bandit was also trembling.


    The outside noise slowly stopped, and all of the sudden it turned into screams of agony. I lifted up my head to look outside the carriage. ¡®it¡¯s night?¡¯ I muttered. I started looking closely, it wasn¡¯t night-time. It was death¡­ I could not believe my eyes. I heard something called an ¡®aura¡¯ exists that only powerful people emit enough to be visible to the naked eye. This was an aura¡­ However, it seemed to contain all the darkness in the world. It was an abyss, the moment I came to touch with it, I started shaking uncontrollably.


    The shrieks subsided. They were dead, at that moment the slave merchant glanced into the carriage. Then I saw it, a figure completely black wearing a cloak clad in that wicked aura. It was death¡­ I started shaking again. When the figure was about to stop looking. It saw me and froze. I felt my heart stop. The figure started talking with the merchant.


    The merchant took me out of the carriage. The figure was interested in me. I felt my fear grow. I was standing right in front of death. The merchant left in a hurry after saying something, I did not hear. The figure seemed to be thinking of something. She started looking at me, I could not take it anymore. I was about to cry, I decided to ask her my fate.


    ¡°W-What are you going to do with me?¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    The figure did not respond. I saw a wolf, it was white, however, the wolf was covered in blood¡­ ¡®I do not want to die yet! Please have mercy¡¯ I started begging inside my head. Death seemed to have come to a conclusion and took off its hood. I could not see the face of the black figure but I saw a pair of beastkin ears?


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    Death kept a solemn atmosphere, however, I felt relaxed for some reason. I heard death¡¯s voice, it was a female voice, she sounded sweet, yet all my senses were telling me I was going to die.


    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±


    ¡°A-Ari¡­¡±


    I managed to say with a voice full of anxiety. Death started speaking.


    ¡°My name is¡­¡±


    She froze.


    ¡°My name is Yami.¡±


    She stiffened after saying that, I could not see her face but I think she was smiling? I started to fidget thinking about how to make her spare my life. I decided that I would need a proper way to address her.


    ¡°M-Master Yami.¡±


    Yami froze, she turned around and looked at me. At that moment I realized I had made a mistake. She started walking towards me. I felt my death coming closer, I started apologizing.


    ¡°I-I did not mean to! I am sorry! I am sorry!¡±


    I grew more and more panicked the closer death was to me. She stopped in front of me, and knelt down? She grabbed my collar and inserted the master key into it. I felt the energy drain from the collar. The collar broke when she twisted the key. I was frozen. Is she trying to give me hope so I scream more when I die?! I tried to speak.


    ¡°U-Umm...?!¡±


    ¡°I am not your master and you are no longer a slave.¡±


    She said. I could see her face now. She was really pretty and for a slight moment, all of her wicked aura vanished. She smiled with a really welcoming face to me. I was flustered. I asked in a voice of the same nature. I think I was going to cry.


    ¡°B-But then what will happen to me?¡±


    ¡°Do you want to come with me?¡±


    She asked with a curious voice. I slowly nodded and started wiping my tears, for some reason I felt happy. I walked towards death while trying to withstand her aura and muttered.


    ¡°Thank you¡­¡±


    She called her wolf over and started heading towards the leafy forest behind her. I understood fairly quickly that the wolf would not try to kill me. We left the road with all the corpses behind as if nothing happened. We arrived at a lake? It was mostly surrounded with trees with a somewhat big shore. Yami suddenly said.


    ¡°Ari, go take a bath. Fenri will assist you.¡±


    ¡°Y-Yami. What are you going to do?¡±


    I asked almost instantly with an anxious voice.


    ¡°I am going to check things.¡±


    ¡°W-...¡±


    ¡®Who are you, What things did you want to check?¡¯ I had so many questions but I could not ask her. The wolf called ¡®Fenri.¡¯ received clothes from Yami, and gently pushed me towards the lake. The clothes¡­ she took them out of nowhere. Like she turned around and then there was clothes?! Just who is she? Also, Fenri is a pretty cute name for death¡¯s doom beast. I took a bath and dried with the help of Fenri, by that I mean the wolf literally rubbed against me to clean me. What is he¡­ a cat?


    I decided to put on the clothes that she gave me. It was a white top that covered my upper body starting from the hips. Some type of pants. They were black and had scales on them¡­ She also left some boots that looked really comfy but incredibly hot. To my surprise, they felt just right. ¡®Just what are these clothes?¡¯ I muttered I had seen [Uncommon] tier items before but they look like trash in comparison to these. Could it be? The rumored [Rare] tier?! Why would she give me something so expensive! I was flustered.


    Fenri suddenly sensed something and rushed in a hurry while excited. I hid, I thought it was a monster. I heard something and screamed while panicking.


    ¡°Kyaaa! Get away!¡±


    There was silence then I heard a sweet voice, my senses were no longer alerting me of my death.


    ¡°Ari it¡¯s me Ku... Y-Yami.¡±


    She stuttered as if she was going to say a different name, I was confused.


    ¡°Wait, Yami?!¡±


    I asked in a surprised but confused voice.


    ¡°Nn¡­¡±


    She nodded. I was embarrassed about it, Yami asked me about what was all of that about. I explained to her that I was anxious about the nice clothing she gave me. I also muttered ¡®Also you are no longer scary so I did not recognize you¡¯ in a really quiet voice.


    ¡°Grrrr¡­¡±


    My stomach screamed. I tried to deny it but I ended up accepting her food. We talked about a lot of things. Yami had a ring that could hide her tail and ears? That was amazing. She let me borrow it. I put on the ring hoping it would do the opposite. She seemed to be amused by this and patted me. I was happy.


    ¡°Ari, could you tell me everything you know about items?¡±


    ¡°W-well if you say so.¡±


    Yami asked in a friendly tone. I blushed and was happy that she would rely on me, but I was confused to why she would ask that. I was explaining item tiers, and she asked about the 7th tier I mentioned. I was perplexed by this but I answered truthfully. She started holding her head as if regretting something. I managed to bring her back to reality by repeating her name in a panic.


    She did not even flinch when I mentioned all the tiers including [Legend] and [Divine] even though she seemed awfully interested in items. She asked a weird question about the 7th tier. [Relic] I explained that Kuro¡¯s disciple appeared and affirmed its existence. She started holding her head as soon as she heard that as if something bad had happened. I brought her back to reality again by tugging on her cloak. She asked about the master craftsman. Which was unbelievable but Yami did not actually know who he was? Just who is she? However, she seemed to understand that well enough.


    Yami kept asking me questions to which I answered happily. I saw an extremely pretty ring on her hand. It looked like a coiled silver tree branch with a green gem on it. She talked in an indifferent tone.


    ¡°Ah well, this is a [Friendship Ring] it basically means you have a really deep bond with someone.¡±


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s so pretty! Do you think I could meet ''that'' someone someday?¡±


    She answered me in a depressed tone.


    ¡°Well, that¡­ I don¡¯t know, hopefully, we can meet her someday.¡±


    I decided at that moment I had to cheer her up. I looked her right in the eyes and declared.


    ¡°No Yami, we will meet her.¡±


    Yami¡¯s eyes brightened and her expression turned more serene, she embraced me.


    ¡°Thank you Ari.¡±


    In an extremely soft but warm voice. I was happy, I wanted to be with her. Yami was incredibly pretty, strong, and her eyes¡­ Her eyes¡­ They were brimming with knowledge as if she had seen it all, her odd eye colors were really pretty too.


    She released me from her embrace. I was kind of sad about it, I saw her right hand. It had a ring that contained all the darkness of the world. Just like her aura from before¡­ I asked about it, She said it was cursed. I did not press any further questions. ¡®What kind of item is that? Could it be? [Legendary]? No there¡¯s no way¡¯ I muttered inside my thoughts. I deceived Yami into promising me she would take me with her. I was happy and declared.


    ¡°Yay! Now I will discover all of your secrets.¡±


    She seemed to be happy and embraced me again, I was happy. She muttered something I could not quite hear, but I think I understood what she said. Some time went by. I asked her about the cursed ring. To which she simply put on a glove on. She declared with resolute confidence that the glove would do the job. Also mentioning it blocked appraisal¡­ ¡®Is that also a [Legendary] item?¡¯ I started thinking about it again ¡®Who is Yami, is she a noble? a princess? No. She is a beastkin¡­ Who is she?. I thought about it but I could not reach an answer. It was getting late. Yami left after making a camp and I went to sleep.


    The next morning I saw a silver-haired girl sleeping like a cat? I woke Yami in a hurry, she asked me what was wrong. My face became filled with annoyance. I pointed towards the girl. Yami glanced at her, went ¡®huh¡¯ and then her expression turned annoyed. Yami sighed. and talked to me, at that moment the figure was already behind Yami and grabbed her shoulder. I could not even see her coming. Just who is she? She spoke in a gentle tone, that made me feel at ease.


    ¡°Hi, Ari was it? My name is Aizen. Yami told me a lot about you, pleased to meet you.~¡±


    Wait, Yami? Also, Yami had an incredibly perplexed expression as if asking who are you. I must let her know her place. I spoke towards the silver-haired girl.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know who you are, but Yami is mine!¡±


    I stuck my tongue out. At that moment, Yami turned visibly nervous. The silver-haired girl whispered something to Yami, Yami spoke as if presenting her and said she would be traveling with us.


    ¡°Eh.¡±


    I let out a stupid voice, I glanced towards the girl. I was upset, I pointed my finger towards her and spoke with a tone full of jealousy?


    ¡°What¡¯s your relationship with Yami?¡±


    She flinched for a second, she came through a mutual agreement with Yami just by looking at her. Just who is she? She spoke with a voice full of joy.


    ¡°We are family.¡±


    ¡°eh¡­¡±


    I let out another stupid sound. I looked towards Yami as if to confirm to which she just nodded. I froze. Where are her ears? They do not even have the same eye color? I went over to the girl. And started checking her hands. All I saw was an extremely pretty ring however it made me feel uneasy when I looked at it. Aizen was it? I started speaking in a confused voice.


    ¡°A-Aizen, you are not a beastkin?


    She was confused and turned her gaze towards Yami, who was looking at her entire body. Her face became even more confused afterwards. I ran over to Yami and took her ring off. Aizen¡¯s eyes went wide open and seemed to realize something.


    She started laughing as if it was obvious. What? She showed her ears hidden behind her hair. They were slightly pointy. I spoke instantly in shock.


    ¡°Half-elf?!¡±


    I froze again. I started muttering things like. ¡®Beastkin and elf?¡¯ ¡®How¡¯ among others. I reached my conclusions. They must be sisters! I turned towards them and spoke in a happy tone.


    ¡°So you and Yami are sisters?¡±


    ¡°¡±Eh.¡±¡±


    They both let out astonished voices as if praising me for figuring it out. I asked in excitement something I knew the answer for.


    ¡°So, so, who is the older one?!¡±


    Aizen pointed towards Yami. Wait. What? How? I looked at her with disapproval. I asked her.


    ¡°Yami, why did you not tell me you had a little sister?!¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    She stayed silent as if having an internal conflict. I was happy for some reason. ¡®Little sister, I like the idea.¡¯ I said inside my thoughts. I turned towards Yami¡¯s cute little half-elf sister and started asking her a lot of things. She did not answer most of them. She told me her class with a dignified voice, she sounded like a part of some royal family when she spoke. She was extremely high level too. I started praising her. She had a proud look. I noticed something, Aizen¡¯s eyes. They were amber however they were brimming with knowledge. They were similar to Yami¡¯s but Aizen¡¯s gave me the feeling that she knew about everything in this world as if she were a dragon. I continued praising her.


    Alice.


    First of all, I am thankful for all the views the novel has been receiving, I would have never believed that it would reach number 3 in daily trending, or even top 10 on that matter. But survive there for more than 1 day? I am sincerely thankful to everyone that has read this far.

 (Chpt. 12) Out of the forest.

    Alice.


    Ari continued praising the dragon, she smug smile on her face the entire time. I was kind of jealous for some reason. It was still early morning, we had breakfast using food from my inventory, sadly I didn¡¯t have much food left. Ari turned to me with a curious look afterwards and asked me.


    ¡°Yami, how do you pull objects out of thin air?¡±


    I was troubled, I did not know how to answer. Are inventories even normal? I decided to answer her question with a question, I decided I would ask Ari about an in-game item that would increase your inventory capacity. It was an item bag. I looked at Ari with a friendly smile, I guess she found it kind of awkward because she stiffened for a second. I started speaking.


    ¡°Ari. Do you know what an item bag is?¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    Oh, they do exist. Well, let¡¯s just say I have one.


    ¡°I have one of those.¡±


    Ari froze for a second and started thinking. Looks like I said something that I shouldn¡¯t have, Aizen looked at me with a smirk, and decided to approach. I was annoyed. Aizen stood in front of Ari, Ari noticed this and involuntarily looked at her. Aizen knelt down and grabbed Ari¡¯s shoulders while looking at her with a solemn expression and spoke.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, Yami is kind of weird.¡±


    Ari just nodded, as if saying ¡®I know right?!¡¯ Aizen, I thought you wouldn¡¯t betray me like this. I was kind of depressed about it, Fenri noticed this and as soon as Aizen was no longer next to Ari. Fenri ran towards Aizen and tackled her, she hit the ground making a loud dull sound.


    ¡°O-Oh is this a game?!¡±


    Aizen said with a dignified yet playful voice while still on the ground and started wrestling with Fenri? Damned dragon. I looked towards Ari, she seemed concerned about Aizen, when she saw that Aizen was unscathed she became really confused, and her face quickly changed to concern again. I looked at Aizen and Fenri again. Fenri was trying to maul Aizen over with all his might but couldn¡¯t¡­


    When they were done, the ground was completely turned into dirt as if grass never existed there. Ari wanted to ask something, but we all pretended like nothing happened. She couldn¡¯t deal with the awkward atmosphere and did not ask anything.


    We started heading towards the road, the place I met Ari in, to my surprise the road was completely clear as if nothing had ever happened. ¡®Huh?¡¯ I muttered in a confused voice, Ari seemed confused too. Aizen kind of just scratched her head and tried to look confused, however that did not last long. Aizen could not stand it anymore and started walking, she called out to us.


    ¡°Hey aren¡¯t we going to town?¡±


    However we did not move, and looked at Aizen as if she was dumb, she quickly started fidgetting with visible uneasiness. Ari felt kind of bad for her and spoke in a kind but nervous voice.


    ¡°U-umm, Aizen the town is the other way around.¡±


    Aizen froze for a second and just turned around and started walking in the right direction as if nothing ever happened. She called out to us again.


    ¡°Hey aren¡¯t we going to town?~¡±


    ¡°¡±Nn¡­¡±¡±


    Ari and I just nodded, as we were walking Ari was fidgeting a lot, she was glancing at Fenri frequently, she wanted to say something. I noticed Fenri was quite big. Could it be? I decided to ask Ari in a curious voice.


    ¡°Do you want to ride Fenri?¡±


    ¡°Nn!¡±


    She instantly nodded with excitement, well I guess that does it. Fenri sat down and waited for her to be on top of him, and then stood up. It looked kind of ridiculous seeing a cheerful girl on top of an intimidating white wolf. Right¡­ How are we getting Fenri into town? I guess I will come up with something when the time comes.


    We continued walking leisurely, Ari at first had a hard time staying on top of Fenri but she slowly started getting the hang of it. After 1 hour or so of walking, Aizen and I noticed something. Aizen spoke while pointing her finger at something.


    ¡°Those are bushes right?¡±


    ¡°I think?¡±


    I had a hard time answering, they were bushes¡­ I think? They kind of looked like bushes, except they were in the middle of the road, and looked somewhat deformed. As we continued walking towards them, the worse they got. Once we were close to the bushes, I noticed something. ¡®Aizen noticed it too huh?¡¯ I muttered. Those were not bushes. Bandits started coming out of the bushes and they had evil smiles. Basically, a generic bandit, the strongest looking one started speaking in a menacing tone, while pointing at us with a sword.


    ¡°Hey, little girls, where are your parents.¡±


    He was moving the sword slightly while talking to make it more threatening or something. I did not really understand it. Ari seemed scared. Aizen did not even flinch. No, she was looking at the bandit like he was in the way, she spoke in the best-dignified voice she could.


    ¡°I will not tolerate this.¡±


    Ari was bewildered by Aizen¡¯s behaviour. I facepalmed. ¡®There she goes again.¡¯ I wonder how many times she has said that to people, at least she didn¡¯t say: ¡®Mere human!¡¯ this time... As I was thinking, the bandit spoke in a mocking matter.


    ¡°O-hooh, this frail little girl wants to play.¡±


    Aizen just pointed her finger at him. At that moment I knew what will happen if I don¡¯t stop her... I had to stop her, I went with the first thing I thought of.


    ¡°Di-¡±


    I hit Aizen on the back of her head, it made a loud dull sound. I did not hold back. Ari tilted her head in confusion and then looked at me with a reproachful look. I whispered into Aizen¡¯s ear in a cold voice.


    ¡°You cannot just instantly kill people especially when Ari is here.¡±


    ¡°...N-Nn.¡±


    Aizen was stiff from the sudden attack but nodded. She seemed to regain her reasoning again, Aizen held the back of her head in pain for a few seconds and pointed her finger at the bandits once again. They were frozen by our weird behaviour. Aizen spoke in a dignified voice again.


    ¡°I will spare you for now. [Fissure].¡±


    ¡°Huh?! Just wh-...¡±


    The bandit retorted in a mad tone but was cut off by extremely loud crack noise. The space itself distorted slightly, like a displaced two-part image, it went back to normal just as fast as it distorted. The bandits were groaning in pain and fainted.


    Do I need to tame this dragon now? Like, does she not know how to hold back! You can¡¯t just use a high-level spell casually even if you use 1 mana point on it. I wanted to hit her. She continued walking as if nothing happened.


    Ari started muttering something. Damned dragon! I hit Aizen again, she looked at me with a confused look and teary eyes. I was mad, I whispered to her again.


    ¡°You can¡¯t just use high-rank spells when you are a lvl 20 mage, even if you were a lvl 20 archmage, it still wouldn¡¯t make sense.¡±


    ¡°...ah.¡±


    Aizen made a dumb ¡®ah¡¯ sound. Ari was still muttering¡­ I sighed, I just started walking pretending I did not see anything, Aizen was flustered but did the same. Ari was still muttering on top of Fenri. When we were passing next to the fallen bandits. The leader seemed to have regained consciousness and asked in a lifeless tone. He was looking at Aizen.


    ¡°... Who are you?¡±


    ¡°Tch.¡±


    Aizen clicked her tongue while looking at the bandit with a cold gaze, she pointed at the bandit and used some kind of magic, the bandit fainted shortly after. Ari was still processing the information from the previous battle so she did not notice. I asked Aizen in a curious tone.


    ¡°What magic was that?¡±


    ¡°What one?¡±


    Aizen played it dumb, I decided to just answer her question.


    ¡°The one that made the guy faint.¡±


    ¡°Ahh, well it''s complicated, however, he should forget everything that just happened.¡±


    Aizen answered while scratching her head with a troubled expression. ¡®Well if that erases his memories I guess I don¡¯t mind. But I think the guy is dead. sigh¡¯ I continued thinking. Ari seemed to regain her senses and started questioning Aizen. Aizen pretended like she knew nothing, so did I. Ari gave up on pressing for an answer. We continued walking leisurely, after some more time we could see some old stone walls on the distance. It was the town the slave merchant spoke about.

 (Author) Announcement/rant.

    Alice.


    EDIT 2: It will no longer be deleted. Thanks for the overwhelming support, I have read through every single comment, and I am thankful for every single one of them. Sincerely your author. ~Azriel.


    Hey guys, it''s me your wonderful author... It''s what I would like to say, I have been having difficulties progressing the story due to poor planning, anyways I am putting in a lot of effort into the story, yes this is a rant, and yes this might sound manipulative. Honestly I love writing, otherwise I wouldn''t do it for 8-10 hours a day and get 3 hours of sleep. I absolutely love it even though I am utter trash at it.


    So where am I getting at?


    I never had hopes for this story, I did not even want to publish it. However after talking with some close friends I decided to do it, it was overwhelmingly well received however, it is a bit depressing for me (I will elaborate on this later), hearing nice comments and feedback cheers me up, it really does. I say this from the bottom of my heart. So to every single one of you, regardless of negative or positive feedback I am thankful.


    I am also thankful to you all that read through this awful story as it gets "better", so let us make the question. "Where am I getting at?" yet again, I have been really busy in real life. However I decided that I would do one chapter a day until around chapter 60, which is honestly far off. My drafts go as far as chapter 15, so you can see what I am saying, again I said it was getting hard to progress the story. One of the major reasons is that I suck at writing, and one of those shitty 1-2k word chapter that you guys read takes around 8-24 hours of work, for context chapter 9 and 9.5 took around 40 hours together. It was painful but it was fulfilling to finish them.


    It''s hard to keep up with the daily releases or the meme double release extra chapter thing, however it makes me happy to read feedback about the story, this is where I am getting at. It''s a double edged sword, I understand that my writing is god-awful, that the first 4 chapters are uninteresting and boring, I would even call them trash. However it is honestly kind of painful seeing 1-3 star ratings without a single bit of feedback. This is a childish rant I am well aware of it, I have so many things going on Irl. Only way to unstress myself is through writing, however seeing it "crumble" (Yes, I am well aware it sounds exaggerated) is painful. How did you feel in school, during that one time ''that'' teacher looked at your paper, gave you a 5/10 mark and did not say anything about it. That is pretty much how I feel right now, It''s hard to keep writing like this, but I will continue.


    EDIT: It also makes me depressed seeing the awful 4.0 rating while it''s in trending, I feel like I am making you all read absolute trash and I cannot even do anything about it. I believe I am at fault for everything, my story is just bad.


    This was something that I had to get out of my chest, since I don''t have many people to turn to when it comes to situations like these.


    I sincerely thank anyone that reads through this childish rant, regardless if you hate me for it or not.


    I will use this also as a Q & A, while I am at it. Feel free to ask any questions.


    No poll this time.

 (Chpt. 13) The hero.

    As we approached the town we could see some merchant carriages and wagons, Ari decided to get off from Fenri and walk, the road was wide enough for carriages to pass and people to walk on the side of the road. As we were approaching we could see some merchants talking and adventurers next to them, some of them noticed us and waved their hands while bearing a warm smile, however they froze as soon as they saw Ari next to Fenri.


    I guess that much was normal.


    Fenri continued walking with us, Ari was visibly nervous about it. Aizen and I just kept walking towards them as if this much was normal. It really was! I swear... When we were close enough, some adventurers rushed towards us, the one that looked like their leader shouted full of enthusiasm as if they were going to be our heroes.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry girls, we will save you from that dangerous wolf!¡±


    It was a four man party, a vanguard which was the leader, a female mage, what seemed like a priest and a scout. We decided to get away from Fenri to see what would happen, Why? ¡®Wouldn¡¯t it be interesting?¡¯ Aizen said in a curious yet evil voice beforehand. I just agreed. Fenri seemed amused by the idea and wagged his tail. Ari reluctantly agreed, so it was decided to let the adventurers try to ¡°subjugate¡± Fenri.  We decided to run towards them in a hurry.


    The adventurer party was ready to beat the menacing beast down, however the leader spoke in a heroic and confident voice.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry guys I can handle the puny lvl.1 wolf! Y-you guys protect the girls!¡±


    He said to protect us while pointing at us, but he had a confused voice and stuttered a bit. Well we did show up next to them and they didn¡¯t notice. Aizen and I kind of just dragged Ari so she was quite shocked too. I admire his acting abilities. The hero went on to beat the menacing beast of death down. Aizen and I had amused faces, The mage noticed this and asked in a curious tone.


    ¡°Why are you girls amused by it?¡±


    I just pointed towards Fenri and spoke in an amused voice.


    ¡°That¡¯s my tamed beast.¡±


    ¡°Your beast is going to die!¡±


    The mage instantly answered while panicking, she then proceeded to talk about the oh-so-great hero; about how he was a gold rank adventurer. Aizen just went ¡®Hoooh¡¯ she seemed to even be more amused by this development, Ari started holding her head with a troubled expression as if asking ¡®How did this happen!¡¯, I just shrugged. The ¡®hero¡¯ did not even have an aura, how strong could he be. The mage gave up seemingly mad because we could not understand how strong the ¡®hero¡¯ was.


    Ari stared at the ¡®hero¡¯ full of worry, we just looked to see how the battle would turn out. The mage noticed how uninterested we were in Fenri¡¯s security and decided to stop pressing on, she also just watched.


    The hero was ready to face the menacing beast of death that was threatening the world. The hero swung his holy sword and slashed the beast. The beast let out a cry of pain and took a step back. It was trembling... The beast tried to attack the hero, however the hero skillfully parried all of his attacks and went on the offensive, the menacing beast of death had been vanquished by the hero. Or so that¡¯s what the mage thought. The hero rushed Fenri, Fenri did not move.


    ¡°This is your end wolf, not moving will be your last mistake!¡±


    He declared full of confidence as he was slashing his sword. When it was about to hit Fenri the sword shattered like glass. Ari and the adventurers froze. The hero was shaking, he was trembling in fear, he quickly lost his balance and fell on his back.


    ¡°M-Mo-Monster¡­¡± He said in a trembling voice that did not fit a heroic figure like him.


    ¡®Huh, so that¡¯s how stats work?¡¯ I muttered, Aizen nodded as if answering my mutter. Looks like if your stats are substantially higher than your foe, they cannot react to what happened. Only Aizen and I saw what happened to the sword. Fenri bit it and shattered it, however due to the disparity in level and stats it just looked like he did not move to others. In short, stats are absolute.


    As I finished thinking about stats, the ¡®hero¡¯ was running towards us full of fear, he started begging us to run for our lives, that was no ordinary wolf. However Aizen and I kind of just answered with indifferent voices, the ¡®hero¡¯ could not take it anymore, and got mad at us.


    ¡°You girls don¡¯t understand!¡±


    He said in an infuriated voice, but his face darkened and he spoke in a defeated tone.


    ¡°I cannot protect you¡­ Please run!¡±


    ¡°Ah, I see. I guess I will have to teach you how to ¡°subjugate¡± a monster.¡±


    I said with a condescending tone. However he wasn¡¯t mad, he just looked at me in disbelief. I started walking towards the menacing beast of death. The hero panicked.


    ¡°Girl?!¡±


    I just looked at Fenri, and said the magic word.


    ¡°Die.¡±


    The menacing beast of death trembled, and took a step back. He started to lose his balance then collapsed on the ground and stuck his tongue out, It was very dramatic. The adventurers froze. Ari had a bitter smile and Aizen was struggling to hold her laughter.


    ¡°H-¡±


    As the ¡®hero¡¯ was about to speak, he froze and looked at my back in fear. The menacing beast was back... however no aura was left from before it was just a docile wolf now. Of course its size didn¡¯t change, it¡¯s not a bear. Fenri casually walked towards me and started rubbing himself against me like a cat. ¡®sigh¡¯ I seriously do not understand if you are a dog, a wolf or a cat¡­


    The group of adventurers were flabbergasted, the ¡®hero¡¯ quickly recovered from his fear and said in astonishment.


    ¡°A tamer?!¡±


    I just nodded, he held his head as if he was in pain muttering things like ¡®How is a tamer this strong, is she higher than gold rank?!¡¯ I paid it no mind and continued walking, Ari and Aizen followed so did Fenri. The adventurer group was discussing something and we continued walking.


    That did not last long, the adventurer group chased after us and got in front of us and started pleading to me.


    ¡°Please join our party!¡±


    They bowed, this was troublesome I needed help. I just looked at Aizen and she nodded, she used chant-less magic unlike normally. It was a spell called [Freeze]. Aizen could only use neutral magic. Neutral magic only has light and dark attribute, together they make neutral magic. The spell literally froze someone, the mana consumption was harsh but for Aizen that had 5 digits in mana, it was no big deal. Ari just looked at them and tilted her head in confusion because they seemed to be stopped in time.


    The carriages and wagons had cleared. We could see the gate, the armored guards just waved at us and smiled.


    Alice.


    Thank you. To every single one of you that commented on the previous chapter, I cannot express this enough. I found myself crying on my desk after reading some of them, I have always been an insecure person about the things I do. Reading about how much some of you enjoy this novel, truly moved me, and for that I am thankful. I came up with a short quote that might sound a bit edgy so don''t bleed please, however this was my heart speaking.


    I write and you read, I cry and you help, I find myself in darkness yet you are my light. Please, don¡¯t leave me.


    ~Azriel.


    Knowing that someone enjoys what I write, truly makes me happy. So please don''t leave me, because I need every single one of you, allow me to be selfish. Sincerely, your author. No. I mean, your wonderful author. ?


    I-It''s not I like you guys or anything. B-bakas.

 (Chpt. 14) Town of Mirl.

    We were close to the city gate, the armored guards still seemed to be in good mood. They did not even react to Fenri. The closer we got to the gate the bigger the walls seemed, they were certainly imposing. However Aizen just looked at them with no reaction. Ari did not react to them either for some reason. I guess I am the only one that has seen such big walls. When we arrived to the gate an old guard greeted us.


    ¡°Hi, welcome to [Mirl]. Could I please have everyone¡¯s  ID or adventurer tag?¡±


    I paused for a second, why is he being so friendly? I decided to answer honestly.


    ¡°We don¡¯t have one.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s fine.¡± The guard instantly answered with a calm voice.


    ¡°eh.¡±


    I let out a stupid sound. What do you mean it¡¯s fine? I am just a random person showing up. He seemed to understand I was confused. He proceeded to speak in a happy and relieved tone.


    ¡°You see, those adventurers have been bothering all the merchants that want to enter the town to employ them because they have a gold rank adventurer, it has been going on for a week, as a thank you for ¡°dealing¡± with them. We welcome you.¡±


    ¡°Ah, so that¡¯s how it was.¡±


    I answered in all honesty, Ari and Aizen just nodded. However I was still concerned about one thing.


    ¡°What about my tamed beast?¡±


    ¡°Well certainly the wolf is scary, but he is so well behaved.¡±


    He glanced at Fenri, he was wagging his tail. The old guard seemed to agree that it would cause trouble, another stationed guard went into the gates and came back with what looked like a white scarf. I just looked at it with curiosity. The old guard received the scarf from the other guard, and turned towards us and began explaining.


    ¡°Wrap this around your wolf¡¯s neck. People will recognize it as a tamed beast. I don''t quite understand it but it¡¯s the standard for tamed beasts to wear something like this.¡±


    He said with a troubled expression while scratching the back of his head. I began placing it around Fenri¡¯s neck, he seemed to like the feel of the scarf. ¡®I might make a better grade one, I have never crafted a scarf though.¡¯ I muttered while I was finishing on putting the scarf on him. As I finished the old guard spoke again in a friendly tone.


    ¡°Welcome to the town of [Mirl]. You can register at any of the three guilds to acquire a valid ID or tag.¡±


    We thanked him, as we were about to pass through the gate, Aizen remembered something and turned towards the old guard.


    ¡°Is this a tag?¡±


    She asked in a curious tone while holding a black dog-tag, it looked rusted however I could still tell it was made out of incredibly high quality material. The old guard froze when he saw the tag, he began speaking in a somewhat nervous tone.


    ¡°G-Girl, I do not know where you found that tag, but it¡¯s a tag from an [Obsidian] rank adventurer. However it seems to be incredibly old just by looking at the design, I would say 30 years or so.¡±


    Aizen had a wry smile when the guard said 30 years.


    ¡°[Obsidian] was the highest rank at that time, now there¡¯s a higher rank, however [Obsidian] adventurers are still considered to be elites among elites.¡±


    ¡°What is the new rank?¡±


    Aizen asked in a curious tone, however the guard just answered sincerely and in a somewhat apologetic tone.


    ¡°I do not know it. That is the first time I see an [Obsidian] tag. It would be better to ask Mirl¡¯s adventurer branch guildmaster.¡±


    Aizen looked unsatisfied but came back to us after the exchange, as soon as she got back I questioned her in a low voice.


    ¡°Where did you get that?¡±


    ¡°The hero tried to subjugate me¡­¡±


    She answered with a somewhat depressed tone and a bitter smile. ¡®Sigh¡¯ let us hope you don¡¯t get ¡°subjugated¡± again. I bet you destroyed the kingdom that day because of the same reason and got [Kingdom destroyer] title. As I finished my internal monologue. We passed through the gate, the ground switched from dirt to cobblestone. The buildings were made with mostly wood. I found them oddly charming even if they looked of questionable quality. The air was, not refreshing at all. It did not smell bad, but it certainly wasn¡¯t refreshing.


    We received curious stares as well as ones of fear most of them were on Fenri, however the ones filled with fear changed after seeing the bright white scarf on Fenri¡¯s neck. The scarf was surprisingly easy to see because of it being a different shade of white. We arrived at the central plaza by walking on a straight line, there was a fountain made out of stone and places to sit next to it. The plaza was incredibly wide for a small town I was kind of surprised. Aizen had an uninterested expression and Ari looked disappointed after seeing the plaza, for some reason.


    ¡°What should we do now?¡±


    Aizen just shrugged her shoulders at my question.


    ¡°We should go get IDs!¡±


    Ari suggested in a cheerful tone and a bright smile while raising both of her arms, however the smile also looked like it had another meaning.


    Aizen and I just agreed without thinking much about it. Ari started moving her head looking for something, and then her eyes sparkled. She was looking at a two floored building that was extremely big, using stone as a base to support the wood. It had a wooden board with a shield and a sword emblem on it, some adventurers entered and some came out. There were another two buildings in the central plaza that looked practically the same but they had different emblems on their boards.


    Ari turned to us with a bright smile on her face, I felt oddly uncomfortable, Aizen seemed to not mind. Ari grabbed both our hands and started to walk with us towards the building she looked at previously. Some of the people walking around seemed amused by this, some of them stopped to look at us, some waved. A lot of them had warm smiles as if seeing something cute.


    We were in front of the building, the adventurers coming and out looked at us like if we were a joke and continued their way. The building had no doors so I could see into the inside. ¡®Is this an adventurer guild?¡¯ is the first thought that came to my mind. There were some tables close to the door, a long reception desk with three ladies, multiple boards that were packed with adventurers. There were also stairs that led up to a kind of balcony above the reception table, they seemed like private rooms of some sort, the wood floor looked pretty old.


    Ari did not seem to mind it and continued walking still holding our hands to the counter, some adventurers seemed curious about us, others did not mind. However when Fenri entered the building, it grew noisy. The adventurers did not attack him because of the scarf. However no one knew who its owner was. We arrived at the counter, a brunette lady with brown eyes greeted us in a friendly tone while smiling.


    ¡°Hello, welcome to the adventurer¡¯s guild, what can we do for you?¡±


    ¡°We want to register.¡±


    Ari said without giving me a chance to speak, the receptionist froze for a second and her smile became stiff. The receptionist began speaking as if nothing happened.


    ¡°Sorry but we cannot let people under the age of 12 register.¡±


    ¡°Oh, not me. I mean them.¡± Ari answered with an uninterested tone then pointed at us.


    ¡°¡±eh.¡±¡± Aizen and I let out confused dumb voices, the receptionist glanced at us and narrowed her eyes. She just nodded and said.


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s fine.¡± She then muttered: ''I think.'' Well. I guess we are adventurers now?


    Ari just what are you planning? I could see a hint of evilness on her smile when she looked at us, Aizen and I realized it was too late. All of the guild was looking at us, some with mocking smiles, some with amused smiles, some weren¡¯t smiling at all. As I was thinking, I heard the wood floor creak, a grumbling adventurer stood up from his seat at the back of the guild, as if he could not stand this anymore.


    Alice.

 (Author) Question to everyone currently reading.

    Alice.


    EDIT: I will not re-write them anymore, it will just be a slight edit, the 4 chapters will become 2 chapters instead. Nothing will be lost, so don''t worry about it. Thank you everyone for your thoughts.


    EDIT 2: I have done it, slighlty edited them, 2 chapters now instead of 4. RIP 45+ Favorites and almost 3k views. Skip this or use this board as a Q & A. Seeing my doubts have been cleared.


    Hey it''s me again, I would like to apologize for posting it as a chapter but this is something that I have been thinking about for a few days now. So I have to ask.


    Should I re-write the first 4 chapters? That being, Prologue, chpt. 0.5 , Side story 1 and 2. Reasons for this being, I think the story starts off incredibly generic. I did not care about story structure when I first started, but now we are here. So I am making myself the question, is it really good enough? If I were to rewrite it, the 4 chapters would probably be condensed into a single prologue or a prologue and a side story, a few things will change, some things will stay the same. So that is my question, I am genuinely curious what everyone thinks about the start.


    I can''t help but think the story is uninteresting until like chpt. 1, which is the reason I am asking everyone that reads this.


    (The next paragraph is uninteresting and can be seen as filler.)


    Also I was told I should apply the show don''t tell thing, by someone I met quite recently. I got a lot of feedback so hopefully my writing should improve, but I have to say that doing it in first person feels awkward and hard, so I might keep the telling going a bit more. Sorry if it bothers some of you guys,  What is show don''t tell? Telling tells you what the person is feeling for example, while showing just hints at the person''s feelings, through body language or behaviour etc. It''s quite hard to explain but it''s the most basic explanation I can give (Not limited to emotions, it is just an easy to understand example), anyways thank you everyone for reading.


    I owe you all an apology if you think it''s a chapter, comment everything you like below. I will keep the daily updates going, which next chapter should be posted at exactly the same time as last one.

 (Chpt. 15) Adventurer鈥檚 guild.

    Alice.


    The man glanced at us with a sharp gaze and began walking towards us. I did not know what to think of it, Aizen did not seem to mind and Ari did not even notice. Fenri was sleeping on the floor. The man was pretty close and he started talking.


    ¡°So, you girls want to be adventurers? Do you think you have what it takes!¡±


    The man exclaimed in such a way that made people think we were mocking adventurers, I just ignored him, Aizen shrugged. Seeing Aizen¡¯s reaction the man¡¯s eyes narrowed and focused on Aizen. He pointed his finger at her and started talking.


    ¡°Specially you, do you think you can become an adventurer? Just a weak little girl, any monster could probably kill you.¡±


    ¡°So?¡±


    Aizen surprisingly answered in an uninterested tone, without even flinching to the criticism. The man was boiling, he challenged Aizen as if it was a distasteful joke.


    ¡°Girly, I challenge you to a duel, if you can even lay a finger on me. I will go back on my words.¡±


    ¡°That sounds boring, how about we do it the other way around?¡±


    Aizen answered in a casual voice yet she was smiling, the man visibly angry, lost his temper. He drew his sword and tried to swing it towards Aizen. Some faces were full of worry, others seemed to agree with the irrational idea.


    ¡°Wait!¡±


    The receptionist shouted in panic, as if those were the magic words, the man was frozen in place. ¡®Ah, there she goes again.¡¯ I muttered. Aizen had a smirk on her face, she was enjoying it. The eyes of the man were trembling, surprisingly she decided turn around and pretend like nothing happened, the man stayed frozen. The guild was silent. Aizen started talking with the frozen receptionist.


    ¡°We would like to be adventurers.¡±


    ¡°A-ah, yes!¡±


    She was frozen for a second and began talking again.


    ¡°To form your adventurer ID we can either use an appraisal stone on you or have you fill out a form.¡±


    As Aizen was about to speak, Ari interrupted.


    ¡°Appraisal stone.¡±


    Aizen and I froze, the receptionist asked with worry on her face.


    ¡°Is there a problem?¡±


    I decided to ask something I was curious about. If it¡¯s an appraisal stone then it should be an item, so they have a capability of how much they can see out of a person status. Only [Legend] grade can see your titles, and only [Divine] can see your special skills, I needed to know or it would be troublesome.


    ¡°How much of a person¡¯s status can the appraisal stone see?¡±


    The receptionist froze, some people looked confused about my question. The veteran looking adventurers had their eyes wide open. The receptionist being a true professional at her job answered truthfully in a low voice so that people would not be able to hear what she was saying.


    ¡°It can only see, name and family as well as a class that the person possesses.¡±


    Aizen found this amusing and agreed, I had no choice but to agree from peer pressure, ¡®A class? Is it random? I have never heard about such things.¡¯ As I was muttering the receptionist pulled out a round red gem from under the desk and a yellowed sheet of paper that she placed on the table, the gem was somewhat transparent yet cloudy. It was a low grade appraisal stone.


    ¡°Can I have your hand?¡±


    She said while looking at Aizen while gesturing with her hand. Aizen reluctantly let her have her hand. The receptionist placed her left hand on the paper and held the gem together with Aizen, she started muttering something. The stone shone brightly, however the receptionist was frozen, nothing happened.


    ¡°H-how?¡± She said with a stutter. Nothing happened that was the problem. No one in the guild understood what happened, Ari was stiff too. Aizen realized, she still had the wrapped glove around her wrist, Aizen was clearly nervous, she decided to take the glove off without anyone noticing and put it into her spatial box. As far as I knew about the skill, it was like an inventory, except it did not freeze time inside it.


    ¡°I guess I will do it myself.¡±


    Aizen said with a tired voice as if it always happened, she decided to snitch the appraisal stone with her overwhelming agility stat. The receptionist did not even notice.


    Aizen put her hand on the paper and used the stone. The paper was some kind of item but it didn¡¯t seem to be even of [Common] quality. The paper started to letters on it. It was what the stone could see of Aizen¡¯s status.


    Name: Aizen


    Family: Kuro


    Class: [???]


    That¡¯s all the paper displayed, I was not surprised. The receptionist finally picked up on what Aizen did and picked the paper up and read it. Her face was expressionless after putting the paper down. Ari grabbed the paper with a bit of a struggle because the desk was a bit too high for her current height. She started reading, her eyes widened after reading it.. Everyone was silent, the adventurers did not notice because they were perplexed by the adventurer that was still frozen in place. The receptionist disregarded it and started talking.


    ¡°Hm, that¡¯s odd, now it¡¯s your turn.¡±


    She said so while looking at me, however most of her professionalism was gone after that happened, I retreated my right hand into my cloak and managed to remove the glove one handed by squishing my hand in between my legs. My hand was numb because of it, luckily no one noticed. I could not let anyone see the wicked ring of all evilness of the world.


    I approached the receptionist, and she did the same thing that she did with Aizen, the stone shone, and the paper started to display letters. I did not like what I saw, Ari did not notice what the paper was displaying. Aizen on the other hand did notice, she seemed amused.


    Name: Yami


    Family: Kuro


    Class: [Summoner lvl.40]


    The receptionist did not seem to think it was going to work, and was flustered. She hurriedly grabbed the paper and started reading it, she froze for a second and moved the paper closer to her face while still holding onto it. She re-read it, after re-reading over and over again. She said in a hurry with a little bit of a stutter.


    ¡°I-I will call the guildmaster!¡±


    The receptionist ran in a hurry upstairs with the paper and went into a room. Ari tilted her head to the side not understand what was happening because the sudden development, Ari started glancing at me and narrowed her eyes while looking at me, as if she didn¡¯t recognize me. It was like she was saying ¡®Who are you?¡¯ with her glance, I felt a little bit uncomfortable. The adventurer was still frozen in time, some adventurers were looking at the frozen man, some others were confused by how the receptionist left in a hurry. Fenri was still sleeping on the ground.


    We stood there waiting for the receptionist, the other receptionists looked visibly confused. None of the adventurers approached us, they were too busy admiring the realistic unmoving sculpture. After waiting for a few minutes the receptionist came out of the room and came downstairs. She stood in front of us and started speaking to us as if we were someone important..


    ¡°Aizen and Yami, the guildmaster would like to see you.¡±


    I had a bad feeling about this, Aizen still looked fine about it, Ari was flabbergasted.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 16) Mithril rank?

    Alice.


    We stood in front of a big wooden door, the door was intimidating in itself. ¡®I did not notice the door was this big.¡¯ As I was thinking, the receptionist approached the door and knocked on it.


    ¡°Come in.¡±


    I heard a deep manly voice that when hearing it made me feel like the person was right in front of me, it was quite hard to describe but I felt like the owner of the voice was strong, the receptionist opened the door that creaked due to its weight, and gestured us to pass, when Ari was about to pass the receptionist said in a friendly yet unwelcoming tone.


    ¡°This is as far as you go.¡±


    ¡°W-...¡±


    As Ari was about to speak the receptionist quickly shut the door. Well that is pretty rude if you ask me, I paid it no mind because I thought it was better to not have Ari in here. It was a wide room, the room was lit by a single window  that was the length of the entire room. The window divided in multiple pieces due to its size, the room had a big conference table and chairs, there was a map on next to the door, and a board on the back-wall. As I was glancing at the board I saw him.


    A hulking figure sitting down, it looked like a 40 year old man, I could only describe him as manly, he was packed with muscles, I could see muscles through his casual shirt. He was quite intimidating if I say so. The man casually spoke.


    ¡°Aizen and Yami, was it?¡±


    ¡°¡±Nn.¡±¡±


    We nodded without even thinking about it, the man was quite strange. I have never seen someone with so many muscles, Aizen also had a distorted face. After we nodded, the receptionist gestured with her hands to take sit on the chairs across the man.


    We sat down, the receptionist just stood at the corner of the room that was behind us. The man began speaking in an apologetic tone.


    ¡°Yami.¡±


    ¡°Yes?!¡±


    I was quite flustered by his sudden approach, however after I said ¡®yes?!¡¯ almost reflexively, the man banged his head against the table top placing both of his hands below his head. He spoke in an apologetic yet fast tone that was full of regret.


    ¡°I am sorry, even though you are incredibly strong we must follow proper procedures so we cannot give you a high adventurer rank!¡±


    ¡°eh.¡±


    I completely froze, I don¡¯t even want a high rank! That would be troublesome, right now I want information about the world. I do not want to be a celebrity or something! After he finished talking, he lifted his head and returned to his original sitting posture, however his expression looked somewhat regretful. I decided to answer his declaration with an unwavering serene voice. I looked at him with a solemn expression.


    ¡°I do not want a high adventurer rank.¡±


    ¡°Eh.¡±


    This time the man said the stupid ¡®eh¡¯ sound. Touch¨¦! I win! Aizen had an amused smile from this and began speaking.


    ¡°We did not even come here to become adventurers, we wanted to know what comes after this rank.¡±


    As Aizen was finishing her sentence she took the [Obsidian] tag from before, as soon as the man saw it his eyes opened wide. He began speaking after a brief silence.


    ¡°Well, I guess since you already know that there¡¯s a rank above it then I guess I can tell you...¡±


    He paused for a moment, he seemed reluctant to ask but ended up deciding to do so.


    ¡°Do you girls know all of the adventurer ranks?¡±


    We just shook our heads, the man grumbled and stood up, he started walking towards the board, he stood in front of it and started writing with his finger? The board started reacting to his mana, it basically allowed the mana to be used as ink. He kept writing for a minute, after he was done, he said in a somewhat fed-up voice.


    ¡°Take a look.¡±


    He was pointing at the board, the board displayed:


    Adventurer ranks:


    E- [Iron]


    D- [Copper]


    C- [Silver]


    B- [Gold]


    A- [Cobalt]


    S- [Obsidian]


    ¡°What are the letters next to the ranks for?¡± Aizen asked in an innocent but curious voice. The man frowned by having to explain this to us, he sighed and began talking.


    ¡°They are the rank of the monster they can subjugate in a party, an obsidian rank party can kill an S rank monster..¡±


    Oh, so that¡¯s how it was¡­ Wait, wasn¡¯t Aizen SS rank? I looked at her from the realization, she had a wry smile from what the man just said. I decided to ask about something.


    ¡°What about SS rank monsters?¡±


    The man after hearing my question had his eyes wide open and froze, as if he was thinking ¡®How does she know?¡¯ after a few seconds the man recovered his composure and talked in a more serious tone.


    ¡°I do not know where you heard about that monster rank. It shouldn¡¯t be public information. But when such a monster exists, there¡¯s another rank called [Mithril] only given to adventurers which have reached 5 digits in all of their stats, however there¡¯s very few of them.¡±


    He answered truthfully, his face lit up a bit as if having realized something however it became regretful, like earlier.


    ¡°Yami, I am sorry, even though I would love to give you [Obsidian] rank. A level 40 summoner, I-¡±


    ¡°eeeeeeeeeeee-.¡±


    As the man was about to finish speaking he was cut off by a high-pitched childish voice that came from behind the heavy wooden door, the receptionist opened the door, Ari fell on the ground as if having lost support to put her weight on. Ari recovered quickly and rushed to me.


    ¡°Yami, you are a level 40 summoner?!¡± She said while looking at me with an expression full of disbelief.


    ¡°Nn.¡± I just nodded. Ari hurriedly asked in a somewhat excited voice.


    ¡°Where are your summons?!¡± I froze, Aizen froze. Ari noticed the weird reaction and her face looked like she regretted asking the question, I had to answer.


    ¡°I ended my contract with my last summon yesterday¡­¡± I answered truthfully, the man had his eyes wide open from hearing this, Ari looked at me expressionless and with somewhat pitiful eyes as if saying ¡®Why would you do that!¡¯. Aizen was looking out of the window as if the conversation didn¡¯t concern her¡­ Wait where¡¯s Fenri?


    After a few seconds of awkward silence, the man spoke as if not having heard anything.


    ¡°Like I was saying, we cannot give you a high rank because of rules, most we can give you is [Copper].¡±


    ¡°What about [Iron]?¡±


    The man had a troubled expression and started scratching the back of his head after hearing this question, he spoke in an unconvinced voice, as if saying ¡®that¡¯s not a good idea.¡¯


    ¡°[Iron] cannot take monster subjugation requests.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s f-¡±


    ¡°And they don¡¯t get free entrance to towns.¡±


    The man hurriedly interrupted me after I was going to answer, I looked at Aizen, she nodded.


    ¡°Then I guess [Copper] is fine.¡±


    I reluctantly said, the man nodded. He started looking at Aizen and declared in a mocking tone.


    ¡°You are going to be [Iron].¡±


    ¡°Eh, why?¡±


    Aizen flinched but quickly questioned the man, the man just looked at her with wide open eyes as if saying ¡®are you serious?¡¯ the man grumbled, and after a brief pause said.


    ¡°You have no class."


    ¡°So?¡± Aizen said in an uninterested voice.


    ¡°So? What do you mean by so? So you are weak!¡±


    The man exclaimed after Aizen¡¯s uninterested answer, somehow Aizen did not kill the man, I guess she really did change. She started talking while looking down on him.


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s do this old man, if you can lay a single finger on me. I will not even attempt to become an adventurer.¡± The man was red now and frowned. He started speaking as he was lifting his body from the creaking chair.


    ¡°You, who do you think you are looking d-¡± He froze for a second as he was finishing his sentence and then he recovered, just as fast as he froze, however he was no longer speaking, he was silent, there was sweat running down his head. He sat down again and after a brief silence he spoke.


    ¡°You can become [Copper].¡±


    Ari did not understand what happened she looked at Aizen with a confused expression, I just shrugged. Does this dragon need to threaten everyone to get her way? At least she isn¡¯t killing people anymore. After that, we registered with the receptionist as [Copper] ranked adventurers, inside the room next door, she gave us a card and a copper dog-tag that looked more updated? I don¡¯t know, the design looked fancier compared to [Obsidian] tag Aizen had, we had to list a class on the card, I wrote [Tamer] and Aizen wrote [Mage]. The translation skill was very useful.


    * * *


    The guildmaster was sitting down in his office, piles of documents on the ground, yet his desk was clear. The man was hitting his desk every time he swore.


    ¡°SHIT!¡±


    Who is that girl?! What did she do?! I was about to stand up, at that moment I felt like my heart was gripped. It was like I was going to die at any moment, it only lasted briefly, but what was that? That is only something a monster could do.


    ¡°Hahaha¡­ Of course, that is not human. It¡¯s a monster.¡±


    A monster¡­ A monster¡­ A mon-.


    ¡°Wait could it be?¡±


    About 30 years ago I heard a story from a far, far away country. Apparently a little girl claiming to be the [Legendary Dragon] destroyed a kingdom, every now and then I would hear about the girl destroying another kingdom, but after a while I stopped hearing news. All I heard is that a spell called [Ruin] was discovered, and the church categorized it as Forbidden. Could it be? No, what I am saying, even if it was that girl, she should be an adult now. This girl, was still a child, she did not look that much older compared to the Yami girl.


    Wait¡­ Level 40 summoner? Wouldn¡¯t she be famous, specially with that unique appearance? I haven¡¯t heard a single thing a new max level summoner, moreover she has no summons? What type of summoner is that? Why would she end the contract? However, even if she has no summons, I have to report to the main branch every time someone with a maxed class shows up. Well there¡¯s no way her second class is over level 10, even prodigies only reach level 60, and the hero that died 30 years ago was said to be level 110 the strongest human alive of all time. No one knows how he died.


    Alice.


    EDIT: Made the guild master more believable instead of him wanting to destroy the poor girls.

 (Announcement) Yet again?!

    Alice.


    This one will be deleted so don''t think i am going to keep posting these types of announcements, ok so author, what is the reason for this useless announcement? I am glad you all ask, seeing trending got reworked I no longer need to post daily chapters to stay relevant, I make the question, Should I increase chapter length and post every two days instead? Vote on the poll.


    On another note, I am kind of upset everyone was calling Ari annoying, I won''t do a please forgive the character but it has only been two chapters, but oh well. The next chapter she sort of redeems herself, sort of. It might look like I am reacting to backlash but I already had the chapter done, I am doing this poll to see if you guys would like 2500-3000 word chapters instead of the usual 1300-1500 ones. Thank you everyone for reading this novel, and reading this bad habit of mine to post announcements as chapters, thank you.


    Sorry no serious poll choice this time seeing I need to know the answer to this, It won''t affect me or affect my writing style whatsoever so just vote whatever works for you. Thanks for reading. o/


    Next update on July 6th unless told otherwise.


    EDIT: Oh boy... we opening June* 6th with 3850 word chapter. It will be posted at around 4am CST.

 (Chpt. 17) Craftsmen guild and registration?!

    Alice.


    Spot absolutely anything?! Let me know because this was actually way too long.


    Let the madness begin!


    We exited the office upstairs, the receptionist stood in front of us and bowed then began speaking.


    "Congratulations, you are now adventurers, you can pick up requests at the board. Once you chose one, take it to a receptionist."


    Even though she was supposed to say it full of energy she said it without any care. After that, the receptionist bowed again and went downstairs to resume her work.


    I guess we are [Copper] ranked adventurers now? Huh, wait. Didn''t the guard say I could register at any of the guilds? Does this mean there are different guilds? Ari had a distant expression, but I did not mind it. I had to ask.


    "Ari, what are the other guilds?"


    She stopped and looked at me with eyes wide open, after seeing my troubled face, she began speaking.


    "Fufufu, could it be¡­ you d-don''t know?"


    "Nn." I just nodded, is this revenge for not telling her I was also a summoner? She also seemed to struggle speaking like that seeing that she stuttered. Ari just went stiff after finishing her sentence, to my surprise she was fidgeting and looking at the ground, it went on for a few seconds then she paused.


    "Yami."


    "Yes?" All of the sudden she spoke, Ari was restlessly fidgeting now and looking at the ground around me as if she didn''t want to look at me, after a few seconds she said my name again with a weak tone.


    "Y-Yami¡­"


    She took a brief pause.


    "P-please forgive me for forcing you to do it through appraisal stone¡­" She said with a stuttering voice while she was trembling.


    ''Ah, so that''s how it was. I mean, I am pretty mysterious if I think about it. Why wouldn''t she want to know? I think wanting to know who I am is understandable. I cannot really hide it forever¡­ Unfortunately.'' As I finished thinking. She was shaking while muttering things I could not quite hear.


    "Ari, it''s fine." I started petting her head trying to comfort her. But it would be troublesome for this to happen again.


    "A-" Just about when I was about to speak Ari started apologizing again with ragged breath.


    "I-I am sorry even though you saved me, I-I d-" I interrupted her with a hug and whispered into her ear.


    "Just don''t do it again." She slowly nodded when she heard my words. I hugged her tighter. Even though she can be problematic she is a nice girl. Aizen had been stiff from the sudden weird interaction. Ari slowly separated herself from me. Her cheeks were flushed, she had somewhat teary eyes. My clothing was somewhat humid from it. Ari after a brief moment happily answered the question from before.


    "Yami, there''s two other guilds, merchant and craftsmen guilds." Wait¡­ Did she just say craftsmen guild?! I know I am supposed to not have anything to do with crafting b-but I want to go, I want to see...


    "Y-...I?!"


    ''Huh, what?'' Ari was shaking me with a worried face, looks like I spaced out... I looked at her and tried to stay composed.


    "Ari, let''s go to the craftsmen guild!" I said hurriedly not being able to wait any longer, well I guess that did not come out composed at all...  Ari had a distorted face from my excited voice but nodded. Aizen gave me a reproachful look but she smiled shortly after. However, it was a smile of happiness not her usual smirk. I did not quite understand it. I decided to look at the reception from the balcony.


    The man was still frozen in place and some people were doing some sort of artistic play with the statue¡­ Huh, well that''s weird. We went downstairs, no one really noticed. We just kept walking towards the exit. Fenri got up from sleeping and followed us. The moment we exited, we heard a dull sound hit the ground. Aizen sighed, she was sweating. I looked at the source of the sound, the man was on the ground shaking uncontrollably. The adventurers were flabbergasted, some had their eyes wide open from realizing that it wasn¡¯t a hyper-realistic statue, others seemed happy that the man was no longer frozen. I whispered to Aizen¡¯s ear.


    ¡°Did you run out of mana?¡±


    She was silent for a second and slowly nodded as if embarrassed about it, well I guess it does make sense, how long did she freeze the man? Also didn¡¯t she freeze the guildmaster for a second too? I mean it¡¯s not like her mana pool is infinite. Oh well she will eventually recover, Ari was looking at Aizen with a puzzled look because she looked extremely tired, at least that¡¯s why it looked like to me, also we were supposed to go to the other guild. So I decided to say.


    ¡°Well let''s go to the other guild.¡±  Ari and Aizen nodded, I started walking towards the other side of the plaza in which another imposing town hall stood this time with a different emblem, it had a hammer, it was a smithing hammer emblem. I am happy, I want to see inside, what will I see, what will I find?!


    Ari was looking at me with a weird expression, am I really that excited? I was drooling¡­ Aizen was smiling with warm eyes when she looked at me, what could she be happy about? I did not change at all since she last saw me, yet she changed a lot, wait¡­ Is she happy that I did not change at all?! I don¡¯t know if I should be happy about it or not¡­ ¡®Well whatever works I guess.¡¯ I muttered, Ari kept looking at me with a worried expression, do I really get that much lost in thought?! I just kept walking in the plaza, people gave me warm looks. Ari and Aizen were following kind of awkwardly after me. People looked at us with interest, others looked at Fenri and smiled because he was pretty cute.


    We arrived in front of the insurmountable building, this one looked more recent compared to the adventurer¡¯s guild, it had a lot of people coming in and out, I was quite excited, what is the crafting in this world like?! Ari told me about items but what about those things that looked like items but they weren¡¯t items?! If I could make those since they are worse than items I could probably save a lot in materials. Wait¡­ people are looking at me?! I was drooling again¡­ Ari looked relieved after I noticed¡­


    I could see into the guild, it looked pretty much the same as the adventurer¡¯s guild except the desk was bigger and it had four receptionists instead of three, two receptionists had blue uniforms and the other two were green. Looks like it was split into two lines, one for customers and one for craftsmen. The place also had request boards but a lot of them were untouched. ¡®Huh, that¡¯s weird.¡¯ I muttered. People were coming in and out of the building, again just like the adventurers they gave us varied looks. ¡®I guess there¡¯s no helping it.¡¯ I shrugged.


    We started walking into the guild, the merchants and customers gave us warm smiles and the craftsmen just looked down on us, giving us an aggressive look, people started looking away when they saw Fenri follow after me. Ari looked nervous, Aizen was quietly looking at what I was going to do. I approached the free blue uniform receptionist.


    ¡°Hello, welcome to the Craftsmen Guild, customers are with the other line.¡± She said with an unchanging expression, I felt her words were slightly hostile for whatever reason, I just did not move, the receptionist¡¯s smile distorted slightly. She repeated herself again... Well, this is awkward.


    ¡°Umm, I want to register.¡± Everyone froze except for Aizen. Everyone was looking at me with wide-open eyes including Ari, Aizen just had a faint smile on her face. The receptionist was frozen, she did not say anything, after some brief moments she spoke.


    ¡°Girly, we can only register people that know how to craft.¡± She said with a somewhat fractured smile and an annoyed tone, I guess that much is expected. I just continued.


    ¡°I can make weapons, if you have a forge I can borrow, I can show you.¡± Ari looked at me with wide-open eyes, the entire guild grew noisy. ¡®Ahhh, what am I doing?!¡¯ I don¡¯t want trouble, especially with the church. Aizen was slightly chuckling from the show I just started. ¡®I guess I have done it now¡­¡¯ I muttered in defeat.


    ¡°Hey, girly I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good idea.¡± Some merchant said other merchants stared at him with hate, others agreeing with him, another one spoke.


    ¡°If you work for me I can help you.¡±


    ¡°Hey?! Who do you think you are?!¡± Another merchant exclaimed while looking at him with bloodshot eyes, they started having a heated argument, at this point it seemed like people weren¡¯t even arguing anymore, they just talked for the sake of talking. My ears started to hurt, this had to stop.


    ¡°St-¡±


    ¡°STOP!¡±


    As I was about to yell I heard an incredibly loud yet raspy voice. When I looked for the source of the voice I could not see anyone, I could hear a periodic clack, coming from the stairs but I could not see anyone behind the railings. I heard it again.


    ¡°Just what is going on here?!¡±


    This time I could see the source of the voice, it was a small man, a dwarf. Chiseled muscles, sharp wise eyes, and a long beard that reached his waist. ¡®Waa, it looks like a default dwarf¡¯ I muttered in amazement, game habits die hard¡­ The man was busy hearing everyone¡¯s explanations and then he looked at me with a sharp gaze. He kept looking at me, I was growing uneasy, he started to walk slowly towards me, then he stopped right in front of me and spoke.


    ¡°So you want to be a craftsman?!¡±


    ¡°Nn.¡±


    I nodded frantically, the man looked rather unhappy, but when he saw me nod frantically, he changed to a somewhat gentle expression, all of the unfriendliness I felt from him was gone. However he did not speak he just held his fist close to his mouth as if thinking of something, everyone was silent, after a few seconds the man looked at me.


    ¡°Girly, you have a crafting class?¡±


    ¡°Nn.¡±


    I slowly nodded, the moment I nodded only Ari looked at me with wide-open eyes, is it that rare? The man continued speaking.


    ¡°What¡¯s your crafting class?¡±


    I froze when I heard that, I looked at Aizen hoping for salvation, she nodded and crossed her arms just like I did with her when Ari asked her. ¡®Don¡¯t say anything troublesome¡­¡¯ I decided, I answered the man with a serene expression.


    ¡°Smith.¡± The man nodded with a faint smile after hearing this, looks like I made the right decision, the entire guild looked at me with wide-open eyes including the receptionists, Fenri was happily wagging his tail. The man after a second of silence looked at me.


    ¡°Come with me I will take you to do your Qualification.¡±


    ¡°Qualification?¡± I questioned him almost instantly since I have never heard of it, some people looked at me with pitiful eyes as if taking pity of my ignorance. The man flinched for a second but answered.


    ¡°I will make you forge a weapon. If you are capable enough you will receive a certified  registration card or get it printed on an already existing guild card from any of the other guilds.¡±


    I nodded after hearing this, it sounds reasonable. After seeing my nod the man gestured to follow him, we followed him outside the guild. Fenri was following after us, the man noticed this and paused for a second.


    ¡°Who is the owner of this tamed wolf?¡±


    ¡°Me.¡± I answered as if it was obvious, hearing this the man froze. Ari facepalmed. Aizen did not quite get it either. The man slightly restless said with his eyes wide open.


    ¡°You are a level 40 tamer?!¡± I went stiff after hearing this.


    ¡°Wait how did you?!¡± I decided to question the man, the man looked at me with the same eyes again, after a few seconds of silence the man spoke in a tone with that had a slight hint of regret.


    ¡°To get a second class you need to max your first class, meaning you could not be smith unless you are a level 40 tamer.¡± Was it always like that?! Oh no... I looked at Ari with my mouth wide open wanting to confirm something, she was sweating but frantically nodded when she noticed my gaze. ¡®Looks like I made yet another mistake.¡¯ I muttered in regret.


    We kept following the man, however, the man walked with stiff steps and paused for a few seconds, people glanced at the man curiously and then they fixed their gaze on us and unconsciously smiled. ¡®This is getting annoying.¡¯ I muttered, Aizen hearing my mutter slightly nodded. Ari just looked at the man with a worried face, then we arrived. It was an insurmountable stone house with a door and some big unglazed windows.


    The man opened the creaking door with rusting hinges and entered inside, we followed after him. It was indeed a forge, A breeze of warm air hit me, I could see a rusted anvil and some ingots next to the candescent furnace as well as a recipient full of oil. The house was wide, seeing it had multiple furnaces and anvils. The man stood just behind the rusted anvil that was not too far away from the door. He looked quite restless moving every few seconds. Fenri decided to stay outside. Once we entered the man fixed his gaze on me. It was a sharp one, the man just kept staring at me until he decided to talk, however his raspy voice came with an aggressive tone.


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°What?¡± What do you mean by ''why?'' What did I even do?! The man kept looking at me while grinding his teeth.


    ¡°Why did you choose to be a smith seeing you are already a level 40 tamer?!¡± He spoke in rage, I don¡¯t get it what¡¯s wrong with that?


    ¡°Because I like smithing?¡± I just answered honestly, I absolutely love anything that has to do with crafting, yet the man hearing this had his eyes wide open, I could see a hint of happiness and a hint of disappointment, I do not quite get it. He spoke in a weak voice while grinding his teeth struggling to talk.


    "W-why?"


    "Because I absolutely love smithing, rather... crafting in general." After basically the same answer the man froze, he was shaking.


    "Why would someone as talented as you chose such a useless class?!" I flinched and started shaking¡­ Useless?! I will show you, damned old man¡­ I will make you go back on your words.


    "Aizen."


    "?" Aizen tilted her head from my mention.


    "Help me, just like the old times." She nodded and her eyes sparkled; she had a warm smile and a somewhat distant look, I will show you, damned old man. You can insult me all you want even mock me, but do not insult crafting classes!


    The man did not even flinch from my evident rage, Ari just stared at me quietly. I pulled out my smithing hammer the jet-black hammer that shone like obsidian, the man froze when he saw it, he spoke in a trembling voice.


    "W-what material is that made out of?" I just expressionlessly looked at him and replied.


    "It''s just a normal hammer." Ari gave it a questioning glance, the man had his eyes wide open from seeing it, I paid it no mind. I looked at Aizen, she nodded.


    I grabbed one of the god-awful quality iron ingots that were next to the furnace, I handed Aizen the ingot and a pair of smithing tongs. She turned away from everyone, and at that moment we saw an incredibly bright light in front of her, she stood still for a second and moved sluggishly while looking at me with a troubled expression. There was a pool of smoldering liquid Iron on the floor, we just looked at each other and we nodded. It was a bad idea to do it the usual way. Ari and the man were frozen like statues with their eyes wide open looking at the candescent bright yellow pool of liquid.


    I just shrugged and grabbed another ingot and tossed it into the furnace instead seeing Aizen would just turn it into liquid instead of heating it, I took the smoldering iron ingot that was bright orange with the tongs and placed it onto the anvil. I struggled a bit because it felt somewhat different compared to the game, the man mockingly smiled when he saw me struggle.


    ¡®I guess I will just make a dagger¡­¡¯ I muttered, I started hammering the scorching steel, slowly giving it a flat thin rectangular shape. I kept hammering it delicately because of the brittle metal I was working with, the man was frozen, and Ari looked closely with sparkling eyes.


    I could hear the satisfying rhythmic clanking of the metal, I kept hammering at a constant pace, shaping it into the blade and then hammering the blade edges delicately. At some point, the man started looking at my craftsmanship in the same way as Ari. After a lot of hammering, I decided it was ¡®Good enough¡¯ and quenched the blade in the oil. I took my file and started giving it sharpness. The metal started shining in a pretty silver, I took out a chisel and gave it my signature half-moon symbol. ¡®Ahh, that felt good.¡¯ I muttered in relief. Ari and the man were frozen from seeing the beautiful silver-colored dagger that sparkled under the light, I did not make a handle to attach it to. The man was completely frozen and Ari just looked at me with sparkling eyes. I looked at the man, he wasn¡¯t moving. Did I show you?! Is it truly useless?! Go back on your words!


    ¡°Is it useless?¡± Hearing this the man started shaking and frantically shook his head side to side, he was looking lifelessly at the ground as if everything he knew was a lie. He started talking in a weak voice.


    ¡°J-just h-how.¡± He was looking at me with wide-open eyes. Ari was fidgeting wanting to say something but ultimately deciding not to. The man just kept switching glances between the dagger and me. It is just a trash item¡­ Is it really so impressive?! As I was thinking the man spoke.


    ¡°That, talent of yours¡­ Is better than any smith I have ever met¡­¡± ¡®Ehhh, that has to be impossible right? I mean it is a new world, there¡¯s absolutely no way this man hasn¡¯t seen better¡­ Right?¡¯ As I was reassuring myself the man said.


    ¡°While I would love to make you a [Mithril] rank smith I am not allowed to do so¡­ So please accept this rank, [Cobalt] It¡¯s the highest rank I can offer you!¡± He desperately finished his sentence and bowed afterwards, however his bow was awful because he kept shaking the entire time.


    I looked at Aizen to see if it was a good idea, she shrugged. I looked at Ari; she shrugged¡­ ¡®Well, I guess I should take my own decision¡­¡¯ Being better than anyone?! That sounds¡­


    ¡°I refuse.¡± I said in an emotionless voice.


    ¡°Eh.¡± The man hearing this let out a confused sound and froze, he stood there for a few seconds processing the information that I just fed to him. Slowly but surely his eyes grew wide looking at me, he was uncontrollably shaking now despite being old, his voice sounded childish.


    ¡°W-Why¡­¡±


    ¡°I do not want to be a craftsman, sounds troublesome.¡± After giving my half-honest answer Ari¡¯s eyes widened and Aizen started chuckling. The man froze, his legs gave up and fell on his knees. He was looking at the ground with an empty gaze. ¡®Did it really affect him this much?¡¯ I muttered in concern, the unmoving kneeling man, looking at the ground. I was concerned however I did not want to be in the same room.


    ¡°We are leaving.¡± I told to Aizen and Ari, they both nodded, the man did not even react to what I said. It was basically like if he was dead. We left the room with the man inside.


    * * *


    The forge lost its fuel, and sunlight stopped entering the inside of the rock house, a trembling man that was just sluggishly getting up glanced outside the window to see the time, he could only see a faint silver light enter the windows, he was restlessly looking around the room having lost his sense of time. He saw it, it shined just like the moon¡­ Its reflective surface was perfect, the man curiously approached the object.


    ¡°Huh?¡± It''s the dagger that girl made, but¡­ Just what is this quality? This is the highest quality blade I have ever seen in my entire life, yet the iron she used was¡­ Bad¡­ She does not want to become a craftsman? Isn¡¯t she just as good other smithing masters? Such a talented girl at first I thought it was such a waste that a level 40 tamer decided to pursue smithing, but looking at the results¡­ I paused as I was inspecting the dagger, it was so perfect that it would make you think it was made with the best quality of iron one could possibly obtain. You could probably sell it to a high-ranking noble without a single problem¡­


    Now that I think about it, when I called it ¡®useless¡¯ she started shaking and giving me bloodshot eyes and then proceeded to ask that silver-haired girl to heat the metal. Yet she melted it¡­ She was a mage... I never heard of a mage that could do that, but I do not know about magic. Wouldn''t she be a famous graduate from the magical academy?


    That smithing hammer that the girl used¡­ What material was that? I have never seen such a fragile-looking material. Yet it was so strong¡­ The girl¡­ those skills, it looks like she has been doing the same thing for her entire life, she made it look so natural. Her eyes sparkled every time she hit the candescent iron.


    When she finished the dagger she looked unsatisfied? Is it even possible to make one of higher quality than this?! I looked with wide-open eyes at the dagger blade carefully inspecting it and I noticed it, a half-moon symbol engraved on it, it looked exactly the same as that man''s symbol¡­ Could it be?! There¡¯s only one person with such a skill, but he¡­ No there¡¯s no way, otherwise, his disciple would have mentioned it¡­ I must report this to the capital, an incredibly talented individual has appeared, such a skilled girl yet she wastes it trying to replicate that man¡¯s work¡­ Pitiful. Some people would kill her for that... Girly, I hope you are fine.

 (Side S. 3) Nobility.

    Alice.


    The sun''s bright warm light was piercing the windows striking the delicate red carpet on the ground, the smooth white stone walls filled with paintings from renowned artists, a black wood desk next to a single floor to ceiling window. A girl was sitting on the desk chair, her head was laying on the desk looking distantly at the bright sky with unfocused honey-colored eyes that matched her somewhat messy hair.


    Sigh.


    ''Why are things like th-''


    "Milady." I was interrupted by my maid as I was lifelessly muttering. I slowly lifted my heavy head turning my line of sight away from the window, I looked at the maid. She was unmoving and looking at me with worried eyes. I just did a forced smile and said with a hollow voice.


    ¡°Yeah I am fine, don¡¯t worry about me.¡± She was just standing there, looking at me, opening her mouth to say something but closing it soon after. Without making a single sound. I just laid my head on my desk again while looking outside of the window, as I did that. I heard the door open and close, it was probably the maid leaving. I continued watching outside the window. It was a beautiful view of the capital, you could see the bright sun cast its light over the garden with flowers that bloomed in a myriad of colors. The black mansion gates, then multiple elegant and luxurious houses around. You could see the grandiose castle of the royal family with its imposing stone brick walls, however¡­ I felt nothing... I felt nothing when looking at the familiar scenery, I started muttering in melancholy.


    ¡®Why is the world like this¡­ so uneventful¡­ Is this what life is about? Studying at the magic academy, keeping up with the noble etiquette? I don''t even want to be a mage, is this what life is truly about? Being classless and acquiring a class then die?¡¯ I lifelessly questioned my existence. I let out a sigh when I was done. the sun was setting. ¡®I guess I should move from he-¡¯ As I was muttering I heard a knock on my door. I straightened myself on the chair and somewhat fixed my messy hair.


    ¡°Come in.¡±


    The doorknob twisted and clicked. The door slowly opened without making much sound, there stood Gerard the head butler with his somewhat wrinkled face and white short hair.


    ¡°Milady. dinner is ready.¡± He just said that with an emotionless expression, as he finished he bowed and closed the door. ¡®I guess it¡¯s time for dinner. Dinner it is then! Not looking forward to it at all.¡¯ I had such thoughts while I started changing into a more formal attire. In the middle of it, a maid came into the room to help me finish dressing. The dress was a standard noble red dress for kids. ¡®Even things like this are the same¡­¡¯ I murmured in disappointment. I exited my room walking without any care or rush.


    Butlers and maids bowed in my presence. I walked downstairs trying to be as elegant as possible before I could think I found myself at the dining hall, it had an extremely long black wood table that was covered in white cloth filled with chairs. However, there was nothing there. No dishes, no utensils. I was looking at the scenery with a somewhat confused face as I was looking. A butler walked into the room and froze when he saw me.


    ¡°M-Milady, you are not supposed to be here. I-It¡¯s in the other room.¡± He spoke in a somewhat nervous tone as if I was going to be offended by such a thing. But the other room?  I started muttering ¡®Is that how it was? No one told me anything about it¡¯, the butler¡¯s smile cracked when he saw me muttering. ¡®Ah, this is bad.¡¯ I looked at the butler.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± I thanked him, and made my way to the other room, exiting the dining hall. The butler stood there unmoving. I did not see him move anyways. I kept walking with all the time in the world, and I found myself in front of a pair of imposing black oak doors with golden doorknobs, they were probably twice my height. There were no servants around so, I twisted the golden knob of one of the doors, it made a satisfying click sound. However, I could not quite open the door, placing my whole weight on it the door bulged and started to move. When the door was slightly open I straightened myself and tried to push it in the least brute way possible. Slowly but surely the door was opening, I started to see the bookshelves filled to the brim with colorful books and a pale white ceiling. When the door finally opened there was a big dark oak desk with gold borders, and a floor to ceiling window behind it with wine-red curtains, however, there was no one behind the desk. Instead, I saw that person sitting on a chair next to a wood table that clearly was put there just for the occasion, the figure stopped reading documents and slowly lifted his head to see who entered the room. As soon as he placed his eyes on me, his expression turned to one of a faint smile and emotionlessly said.


    ¡°Welcome, my beloved daughter.¡±


    ¡°Ah, hello father.¡± I said while scratching the back of my head. He frowned by my rude behaviour but decided to not say anything, I smoothly walked as elegantly as possible and sat on the chair that was across him. I struggled to get on the chair, as soon as I straightened myself after sitting. My father rang the small polished silver bell that was on the table. I heard faint footsteps and a butler entered the room and placed a white table cover with small golden frills on top of the table. As I was watching, the butler left and another butler stepped into the room and placed white ceramic plates and a variety of different sized silverware. Looking at it. Thoughts about how dumb this whole etiquette for eating is¡­ Gerard and another butler walked into the room holding silver platters. They began serving us elegantly without wasting any movements. Looking at this I unconsciously muttered. ¡®Befitting of the family of a Viscount, huh.¡¯ Luckily no one heard me, once the plates were set they bowed and left easily closing the hulking door that I struggled so much to open. A rich and fragrant smell reached my nose, it was the food.


    The food was the only thing I looked forward to, steamed shiny smooth vegetables. A juicy steak of pork meat and recently baked bread that looked so soft you could mold it. As I looked at the food with piercing eyes that would scare any person, my father spoke.


    ¡°My daughter...¡± I heard his cold voice followed by silence.


    I have made a mistake¡­ I slowly lifted my head to look at my father, he was frowning and looking at me with scornful eyes. A drop of sweat was running down the side of my head. I was unmoving from his piercing gaze, his muscles somewhat relaxed and spoke again, this time in a somewhat friendlier tone.


    ¡°My daughter, congratulations on your ninth birthday, I hope you grow up to be an excellent mage.¡± Hearing this my fake smile became somewhat stiff. I answered with a slight stutter.


    ¡°T-thanks.¡± My father frowned yet again from my disrespectful reply, however, he did not say anything for the rest of the dinner. Sadly the ¡°delicious¡± food was tasteless after that happened. I did not have the appetite and basically forced myself to eat. Once we had eaten the food, my father rang the small bell yet again. Gerard came into the room with another butler. The butler took all of the used dishes and silverware and left, Gerard bowed and also left.


    I found myself in front of my father, with nowhere to go. He just kept looking at me with sharp and piercing eyes, I was beginning to grow uncomfortable and started to fidget with my hands while looking at them. I heard his voice again.


    ¡°My daughter, have you acquired the mage class yet?¡± I froze and stopped fidgeting, I looked up to see him, he still had the same eyes. I opened my mouth to speak, but I closed it again and looked down to see my hands again. I was still classless, how would he react? Would he disown me? What should I do? I guess it¡¯s better to tell him than him figuring out¡­


    ¡°I-I have not.¡± He frowned yet again, I could see a vein pop on his head. With a somewhat weird but unfriendly tone, he spoke.


    ¡°I hope you do it soon, you may leave.¡± He just dismissed me like that, I was frozen for a second but got off from my chair and started walking towards the dark oak door. I tried to open it but I struggled, I heard a sigh from behind me and the bell ringing. One of the doors opened and Gerard was there, he was somewhat confused but seeing me he just moved aside for me to pass through the door. I just left without making a single sound walking up the stairs and arriving at the main hallway that leads to my room. There were no maids nor butlers. I relaxed my tense shoulders.


    ¡®Sigh, I wonder how long this will continue.¡¯ I muttered while walking on the endless red carpet that led to my room.


    ¡®Are classes really that important, why a mage? I do not understand anything about this place. Do I even need a class? It is not like I will live longer if I get one. It is just for show¡­¡¯ Complaining the whole way I arrived in front of my room with a way less imposing door that I could open. I opened the door to my completely dark room and hurriedly closed it without making any sound. I took off my dress in a hurry and threw it on the ground. I rushed to my bed and jumped into it letting my body hit it and lifelessly lay on it.


    ¡®Do I really need to keep going through this? Why does my father keep insisting me on becoming a mage? Just...¡¯ I muttered in a weak tone. My vision was turning blurry and I could feel a humid sensation run through my cheeks. I was crying. ¡®I just want to see the world, I do not want to stay at a mansion and at the academy my whole life only for money or for the sake of my family¡¯s bloodline.¡¯ I continued muttering my complaints and dug my head on my pillow. I started to feel dizzy, and could not focus my eyes on anything. My brain was slowly drifting until I fell asleep while pouring on my pillow.


    ¡®Rage, disappointment, and disappointment in myself¡¯ Those are the first things that come to my mind when I think just how dinner with my daugher went, she opened that door by herself in such a brute way¡­ She kept lifelessly looking at her surroundings and muttering under her breath. Where did I go wrong? I find myself restlessly tapping my fingers on my desk trying to think about the answer.


    ¡°How does this happen!¡± I slammed my clenched fist on the desk. How do you even make such a mistake, like I did? She has not even acquired the mage class yet, you would think she would be eagerly trying to learn knowing she has the amazing privilege to be able to enroll in the magic academy. Yet she hasn¡¯t even acquired the class¡­ ¡®Is it because she is untalented? Is it my fault?¡¯ I grabbed my head with both of my hands trying to reach the answer to my thoughts.


    ¡°M-... M-...¡± I was interrupted from my deep thoughts by Gerard, he was standing in front of my desk while fidgeting with his white-gloved hands, he had a drop of sweat running down the side of his head. He just had called for me but I could barely hear it. Gerard was looking at me with eyes full of worry.


    ¡°I am fine Gerard, you may go.¡± Gerard stopped fidgeting and opened his mouth to say something but closed it again. He bowed and left closing the extremely heavy doors making a click sound that resounded inside the whole room.


    ¡®Sigh, I need to re-think about a lot of things.¡¯ I muttered as I relaxed my whole body and let it slide down my chair.

 (Chpt. 18) Identity.

    ¡®Well, I guess I can no longer craft anymore huh? Also, did we leave the pool of melted iron there? Well, whatever, I feel like I am forgetting something though.¡¯ As I finished muttering we were already standing on the central plaza. A few curious glances on Fenri, some people looked at his golden bracelets with eyes full of greed but they did not move. The plaza had a lot more people and was filled with street stalls now. Thinking about it, Ari has not said anything since she found out I have three classes, also she has a distant look.


    ¡°Ari.¡± She was silent for a few seconds but suddenly color returned to her eyes.


    ¡°...Yes?!¡±


    ¡°Is everything okay?¡± After hearing my question she just started fidgeting and looking at the ground. Not saying absolutely anything, she would glance to see my face and then hide her face again.


    ¡°Ah, well let¡¯s buy food.¡± Aizen chimed in and said in a carefree tone, I nodded, however, Ari hearing this glanced at Aizen that was still the same as ever. She just looked at Aizen with wide-open eyes as if questioning if she was alright. However, Aizen just looked at her and shrugged, Ari from her weird behaviour just nodded. Aizen continued talking.


    ¡°Well, we need fruits, meat is not a bad idea too.¡±


    ¡°U-umm, won¡¯t meat go bad if we are traveling?¡± Ari questioned Aizen however she was still somewhat nervous from our previous interaction.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± Aizen just instantly answered her, Ari not knowing what to do just nodded.


    Well, we do need food if we are going to move from this town, however now thinking about it in all honesty. With this new world and stuff, I don''t even know what is the best thing to do. Become a renowned adventurer and then retire in a safe place to not be bothered? Try to make money somehow and not be bothered? Explore? In the first place, this world is not even the same as the game world. It is fairly similar however I have never heard of this town we are in, never even seen those things that are somewhat like items but are not items¡­


    ¡°Y-...¡± I somewhat heard Aizen, pulling me back from my thoughts. She just looked at me and sighed.


    ¡°We are going to the food stalls.¡±


    ¡°Nn.¡± I nodded, looking around everyone is looking at us with a lot of different faces. Some are happy, some look worried about the lost little girls. Some have evil grins. Aizen began walking and Ari started to follow. Fenri was unmoving looking at me, I just followed Aizen so did Fenri.


    We arrived in front of a food stall that sold fruits. Aizen approached the old man behind the food stall and started pointing towards the barrel full of apples.


    ¡°How much for the barrel?¡± The old man¡¯s smile somewhat cracked and he answered.


    ¡°Girly, I do not think you can afford it, let alone transport it. But it¡¯s 1 gold coin in total.¡±


    Hearing this Aizen put her hand on her chin and thought for a second, then put one of her hands on her pocket and pulled out a gold coin. The problem with the coin was that it looked fairly tarnished. The man looked at the coin with wide-open eyes.


    ¡°That is certainly an old coin. Except it has a crest I  have never seen before. Sorry, but I cannot accept it.¡± The man apologized and slightly bowed. Aizen started scratching her cheek and came to me.


    ¡°K- Yami¡­¡± She just looked at me with sad puppy eyes. What¡¯s with this dragon? Sigh, let¡¯s see. The merchant did give me a bag full of coins. I reached my right hand inside my cloak and took it out of my inventory. I started looking inside and I saw: One blue coin, three gold coins, five silver coins, and ten bronze coins. All of the coins had a picture of a castle on one side and the other side had some sort of emblem. I gave a gold coin to Aizen and put away the coin pouch. As soon as she received it she went towards the old man again and gave it to him. The man froze for a second but started inspecting the coin and nodded. He talked in a somewhat regretful voice.


    ¡°Girly, you may take the barrel, but I cannot help you carry it.¡±


    ¡°Ah, that¡¯s fine.¡± Aizen answered carefree as usual. The old man unmoving just looked at her while tilting his head wondering how she would take the barrel. Aizen placed her gaze on the barrel while putting her hand on her chin yet again thinking on how to move it. She ultimately decided to push it, extremely slowly as if she was struggling with it until it was right in front of me. She whispered to my ear.


    ¡°Do you have some type of cloth you can put on top of it that covers it entirely?¡±


    ¡°Nn.¡± Confused. I just nodded, I placed my hand inside my cloak again and took a black cape that shone in a somewhat purple tone when the sun struck it. It was an item but it can double down as a mantle. I gave it to her and she placed it on top of the barrel. Some people looked at the mantle with confusion. Fenri was sleeping on the ground waiting and Ari was looking at the cloak with somewhat excited eyes waiting for something to happen. Aizen faced the palm of one of her hands towards the barrel and started chanting?


    ¡°O, I order you in the name of uh¡­¡± She stopped... Thinking about what to do with the whole invented chant. She did the same thing again.


    ¡°O, I order you to hide and disappear in darkness until I call upon you again, in the name of the legendary dragon. [Hide].¡±


    After she finished chanting the cloak or mantle that was on top of the barrel slowly hit the ground as if no object had been placed below it. Sigh, that is not even a magic that exists, you are just going to put it in your spatial box while pretending it''s a trick? Ari tilted her head in confusion due to the weird chant. Some people looked with wide-open eyes as if they had witnessed the impossible, others just tilted their heads in confusion to the newfound magic. Aizen crouched and grabbed the cloak from the ground and gave it to me. I just gave her a piercing look while I received it while I put it away as inconspicuous as possible. She had a wry smile from my reproachful stare.


    ¡°Umm.¡±


    As I was looking at Aizen I heard a voice behind me. It was Ari, we both looked at her, she was fidgeting and started speaking again in a somewhat quiet voice.


    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we find an inn?"


    An inn... Yeah, we do need that. Ari is right, we need a place to sleep it is not like we are going to sleep on the street. We nodded while simultaneously leaving the scene somewhat hurriedly since everyone was looking at the weird silver-haired mage that no one has ever seen before. We walked at a quick pace until we were towards the borders of the plaza will all the businesses. I saw a young man passing by that was wearing leather armor, probably an adventurer.


    ¡°Umm, excuse me.¡± I called out to him, he stopped to see where the source of the voice was coming from eventually fixing his gaze on me. He just kept staring somewhat awkwardly unmoving from his position. I took a step back from his weird behaviour, suddenly his eyes glowed and rushed towards me. He was uncomfortably close to me, he began talking in a somewhat excited voice.


    ¡°An, inn? I can lead you to one, just follow me.¡± He puffed his chest in pride, we awkwardly nodded and began following him. As we were walking a lot of people fixed their gaze on us. Wait where is Fenri? As I was looking around I saw him, he was still sleeping in front of the apple food stall. Some children were poking him he would somewhat open his eyes from it and the children would run away screaming in joy¡­ . ¡®Well, just come back when you can.¡¯ I muttered. Fenri leisurely lifted his head and placed his gaze on me and nodded. Quite impressive, as expected from my tamed beast.


    We arrived in front of a three-floor inn, it looked like a big house and the second floor was bigger than the first floor, the third floor bigger than all of the other floors. It looked like some type of inverted pyramid but I did not question it. The man stood in front of the door and fixed his eyes on me.


    ¡°Please marry me!¡±


    ¡°¡±¡±eh.¡±¡±¡± All three of us just let out stupid sounds from the sudden energetic exclamation. The man continued talking.


    ¡°Ever since I placed my eyes on you. I know you were the one, with those beautiful odd-colored eyes that seem to hold all the knowledge of the world. That charmful smile and your beautiful white hair that shimmers in a myriad of colors.¡± He just kept blabbering about how I looked, I was completely stiff from this. Aizen was rolling on the floor laughing at this weird occurrence. Damned dragon. Ari just froze and looked at me then at the ground over and over again. Eventually, the man stopped and looked at me with sparkling eyes waiting for my reply.


    ¡°I refuse.¡± The man froze, Ari just shrugged and Aizen was gasping for air as she was lifting herself from the ground.


    ¡°But you a-¡±


    ¡°I refuse. Go away creep.¡± I interrupted the man as he was about to speak and looked at him with disgust. The man flinched and looked at the ground with a dark face. He turned towards the street and started walking like a zombie. I could see a trail of what seemed like drops of water behind him.


    [Title unlocked: Heartbreaker.]


    Cold as ice. Perhaps you might find love in a glacier?


    I flinched reading the image that flashed in my mind. ¡®I am not into guys! Ahhh!¡¯ I started holding in frustration from such thoughts. Aizen had finally lifted herself from the ground and straightened herself. She had a smirk, she started to speak in a playful tone.


    ¡°Wife¡­ Pff!¡± She held her mouth to avoid laughing. I looked at her with bloodshot eyes. Who are you even laughing at? Do you even have the right to laugh?!


    ¡°Shut up you pitiful dragon!¡±


    ¡°Oh-hooh. What did you say? Y-¡±


    ¡°Umm.¡±


    As Aizen was about to speak she was interrupted by Ari¡¯s voice, she was fidgeting and looking at us. I glanced to see Aizen she also looked to me. We realized the commotion we were doing. Some people that came out of the inn looked at us while tilting their head, some of the people around were somewhat stiff while walking.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry as well.¡±


    We both apologize even though neither of us were sorry. Ari let out a sigh of relief. She was considerably less tense than when we exited the forge. Ari cheerfully said.


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s go into the inn!¡±


    ¡°Nn.¡±


    We both nodded. I walked towards the door and opened it a bell rang in a pleasant sound. However no one looked towards the door, the first floor was like a diner that was filled with couples? There was a receptionist at the big bar-counter and next to it there were stairs that led to the second floor. We walked towards the counter and when we were in front of it the charming old lady that was behind the counter noticed us.


    ¡°Oh, my. What do we have here?¡± Hearing those words we tilted our heads. The lady seeing our reaction began speaking again.


    ¡°Welcome to Mirl¡¯s couple inn.¡± Couple inn?! WHAT?! All of us froze. I decided to explain as soon as I recovered.


    ¡°Wait, we were just looking for an inn, and a man led us here and then proposed to me but I declined him.¡± The lady nodded as if this happened often.


    ¡°I see how it is. Well, this works as an inn too, despite the lovey-dovey atmosphere.¡±


    Well, I guess that is fine.


    ¡°Room for one please.¡± The lady tilted her head looking at our group of three.


    ¡°I mean the bed is pretty spacious but I do not think you can fit three people in there.¡±


    ¡°That is fine.¡± She just paused for a second hearing my careless reply.


    ¡°... That would be 5 silver coins.¡±


    I decided to give her 1 gold coin instead of the silver coins, I assume it is of higher value so I should receive change. The lady went somewhat stiff when receiving the coin but handed me a room key and 5 silver coins. She began speaking again.


    ¡°Your room is on the second floor, once you go up the stairs you just walk straight until the end of the hallway. There¡¯s a door at the end, that is your room.¡±


    Despite her weird wording, I understood the location of the room, so I nodded however, I had one thing to ask.


    ¡°Umm, I have a tamed beast. It¡¯s a white wolf however, it is not with me right now, is he admitted in the building?¡± The receptionist after pondering for a few seconds answered.


    ¡°Well, if it¡¯s cute I think I can allow it.¡±


    Ha? Well, I guess I will not object...


    ¡°Ah, okay. He may just enter the building at a random ti-¡± I heard the door ring as I was answering. I looked towards the door. It was Fenri, I could slightly see outside the door and there was a bunch of kids¡­ Just what did you do? The receptionist also followed my gaze and placed it on Fenri she was silent for a second.


    ¡°... Well, he is pretty cute I will allow it.¡±


    Well that works I guess. Fenri entered the inn wagging his tail, the kids had downcast eyes because they could not come in with him. Sigh. He arrived in front of us. I just looked at him, he stopped wagging his tail. Bad dog! Or wolf? Fenri was looking at the ground as if apologizing. I guess that is fine. I started petting him, he lifted his head again and started swaying his tail happily again and. We went up-stairs without asking about food or anything. Fenri followed, attracting some of the couple¡¯s glances but they went back to chattering a second afterwards.


    We walked through the hallway, the walls looked in good condition seeing they had no cracks, the wooden floor shined reflecting the light from some type of items on the ceiling and the doors looked to be made out of polished oak with golden knobs. We arrived at our room and opened the door with the key. It made a nice click sound, the room was way more spacious than what I expected. It was a 6 tatami sized rectangular room. There was a bed at the back of the room and a table with four chairs at the center. It was not a bad layout however it felt like it lacked a lot of things. I noticed a door on the right wall. I think it was a bath? I wonder if all inns are like this?


    As soon as we closed the door. Aizen took the apple barrel out of her spatial box and left it next to the door then looked at me and nodded. She began leisurely walking until she was next to the bed and rubbed her eyes then curled herself up to sleep? I think it was due to her mana being low? She tries to keep appearances too much, however, she is doing it around Ari. Is she now familiar with her? I looked at Ari, she just looked at Aizen and tilted her head wondering what this was about. I put away the barrel in my inventory.


    I took a sit on one of the chairs. Ari was unmoving from the entrance. She was fidgeting when she saw me sit, she looked at the ground and then took a glance at me then at the ground again. Ari timidly spoke.


    ¡°Umm.¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    Ari was still looking at the ground and fidgeting, after a brief pause she asked me while stuttering.


    ¡°W-Who are you?¡± I froze when I heard her question.


    Alice.


    6 tatami room is about: 3.52m * 2.62m or  11.54ft * 8.61ft

 (Chpt. 19) Secrets?

    Alice.


    How am I supposed to answer that? I can''t just go like: ''Oh yea, I am the master craftsman.'' As if that would work! Taking a look at her. She is now trembling and looking at the ground while fidgeting, and I am just wondering how to answer that troublesome question. I have to play it dumb.


    "What do you mean by that? I am Yami."


    "That''s a lie."


    She instantly answered without hesitation however she went back to looking at the ground. This is troublesome...


    I decided to ask her ignoring her nervousness.


    "What do you mean by that?"


    She heard me. However, I only heard silence. She kept fidgeting on the spot until I heard some mutter, but I still could not hear her voice yet. After taking a long breath she finally said in a somewhat quiet and stuttery manner.


    ¡°I-I have never heard your name before¡­ I am guessing you have reached level 100 already, t-that is hero levels of strength¡­ Y-Yet you are not famous¡­ Just, who are you?¡±


    How do I even answer? Who am I? The master craftsman? My name is not even Kuro at this point¡­ Haaa. Well, let¡¯s see¡­ I am a high-level beastkin right now. Now thinking about it, I am pretty much no-one aside from my classes and levels. Not a single person knows about me yet¡­ Well, I guess I will just answer her.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­¡±


    Hearing this Ari stopped moving, she slowly lifted her head to make eye contact, however, I just had an uneasy expression. Ari looked at the ground without saying anything.


    ¡°Then, can you tell me what you know?¡±


    Haa? Well, I guess I can do that if it does not go too far into personal levels.


    ¡°I can answer your questions if I am able to.¡±


    Ari hearing my reply quietly walked and sat on one of the chairs across me. After a brief silence, she decided to speak.


    ¡°Why are you such a high level.¡±


    ¡°I killed a lot of monsters.¡± I answered nonchalantly.


    The Q&A session began, most of her questions had to do with. Why I had things like items that were [Rare] grade. However, there were some questions I ignored the ones I answered mostly came down to: ¡®I killed monsters.¡¯ Which was basically grind. Of course, Ari was unconvinced to pretty much all of my answers despite it being the truth. She did not question it for some reason. I wonder what is she thinking about?


    ¡°Who is Aizen?¡± She suddenly asked.


    ¡°... My sister.¡± I answered with a fractured smile¡­ My sister¡­ Haha¡­ Such an annoying sister!


    ¡°Well¡­ Yami¡­ You and Aizen behave more like little kids than sisters¡­¡±


    My heart... It hurts. She is merciless... Ari continued speaking.


    ¡°So, who is she?¡±


    Haa, I guess I should at least answer this one.


    ¡°Well it is true we are technically family members. However, Aizen is not really human ra-¡±


    ¡°Of course she isn¡¯t human, she is a half-elf!¡± Ari jolted from her seat while declaring with full confidence. Interrupting me mid-sentence¡­


    ¡°Aizen is not really a half-elf either or any other humanoid race for that matter¡­¡± I dismissed Ari¡¯s declaration, she was frozen for a few seconds but she somewhat relaxed as time went by. She slowly sat back down. With all her nervousness gone. She asked.


    ¡°Then¡­ what is she?¡±


    ¡°That is a good question¡­ I do not know... ¡° Ari just looked at me with an open mouth and blinked a few times. After a few seconds. Ari took a deep breath and inquired.


    ¡°... So, what is your TRUE relationship with her?¡± Ari gave emphasis to the true part. I guess she should know at least a bit.


    ¡°Aizen is my ex-summoned beast.¡±


    After my declaration, Ari¡¯s eyes widened and she just sat there with wide-open mouth. She looked at me then at her. She kept doing it for what probably felt like an eternity.


    ¡°How does that even work!¡± She exclaimed in frustration while muttering things and holding her head in pain. ¡®Haa, I wish I knew¡­¡¯ I muttered. After a brief pause, I told her.


    ¡°¡­ Well, I think you should ask her when you get the time.¡±


    After the conversation was finished. Ari looked unsatisfied however her expression seemed to have some regret in it. I got up from the table and was going to check out what was in the door room. As I was walking, I heard Ari¡¯s quiet voice.


    ¡°Yami¡­ Can I really come with you?¡±


    ¡°Yes, we promised. Remember?¡±


    I answered her, however, she was silent. I turned around only to see Ari pouring on the table with a downcast face and dark eyes¡­ She slowly raised her head and looked at me, after a brief silence she started speaking an almost inaudible and trembling voice.


    ¡°... W-Will you protect me?¡±


    ¡°Well I do not know who you need protection from, but I will¡­¡± I gave a somewhat casual answer but rest assured I absolutely will. I decided I would take care of you. Even if I never told you anything Ari.


    She was silent from hearing my words however her grim face regained some color, her eyes regained focus. She burrowed her face on her arms and kept crying.


    I stood there watching her for a few seconds. ¡®I guess that is fine¡­ Although I do not understand.¡¯ I muttered as I was turning around. As I was about to reach the door I heard the chair screech. I turned around to see what was happening. Ari was standing there looking at me with a gaze full of determination with slightly flushed and wet cheeks, her legs were trembling.


    She declared while pointing her hand at me.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care who you are. You are Yami to me!¡± Her voice became somewhat childish towards the end but I guess that was fine. I had a smile on my face for some reason. I turned around and finally opened the door. It was indeed a bath. When Ari peered in she reflexively questioned.


    ¡°A bath?¡±


    Is it really that uncommon to even surprise her? Well, that is good I guess I can try to take a bath. I don''t feel dirty yet but I want a bath. I have not taken a bath in? Ah¡­ I have never taken a bath¡­ VR did not allow it and... Real life? I could not feel it. I don¡¯t even remember it¡­ Well, first time for everything¡­


    As I was about to enter the room Ari pulled my sleeve. She looked at me expecting something. Does she want to take a bath with me? No way¡­


    ¡°Ari, could it be you want to take a bath with me?¡± I asked jokingly.


    ¡°... Nn.¡± She slowly and quietly nodded.


    A bath? With her? I do not want to go to jail!¡­ Wait... is there even a jail here? Do I even have any desire? Ahh, so many questions to answer¡­ Ari was looking at me wondering why I was standing still. I guess, I spaced out yet again.


    I looked inside the bath, it was not very spacious but it had a somewhat spacious tub with a mirror next to it and what looked like straw baskets for clothes on a rack next to the door. The tub seemed that it could fit around two adults in it.


    There was a drain next to the tub and a few buckets. I think I was supposed to wash myself before using the tub? It does sound very logical¡­ As I internally nodded. Ari went into the bathroom before me. The floor looked rather slippery due to it being white ceramic. ¡®Isn¡¯t this rather luxurious?¡¯ I muttered while walking into the bath. I noticed some pelts hanging from the wall. I am guessing they are towels?


    I started taking all of my clothes off. Looking at my body I did not feel excited for some reason¡­ Could it be¡­ Nonono! I frantically shook my head at what I was thinking. I noticed Ari¡¯s clothes on one of the baskets. I put all of my clothes on another basket and took the [Disguise] ring off. I shivered after taking it off. It was honestly fairly uncomfortable to wear. It just did not feel right at all. I left the other two rings on. ¡®Both of them are important although they are important in different ways.¡¯ I wryly smiled thinking about it¡­


    ¡°Yami, you are not coming?¡± Ari pulled me out of my thoughts.


    ¡°Ah, sorry I was thinking for a second.¡±


    I apologized and turned around to go to the bath. The tub was already filled with warm water and the room was getting steamy. Ari was washing herself with one of the buckets. I noticed that the tub faucet did not have controls, as I was watching Ari touched the faucet and water came out. When she stopped touching it just stopped.


    ¡°Ari what is that?¡± I said while pointing at the faucet. She just tilted her head to the side in confusion. After she noticed what I was pointing at, she just tilted her head yet again.


    ¡°Yami, you are joking right?¡± Hearing this I just shook my head.


    ¡°Ha¡­ It''s a magical tool for baths.¡± She said while saying the obvious. Wait... magical-tool? Is it the same as that paper in the guild? I decided to ask, rather¡­ I had to ask.


    ¡°Is it like that paper at the guild?¡± Ari slowly and awkwardly nodded as if I was saying something that is common knowledge¡­ Well, the world sure has changed. I guess I will find out soon enough.


    I headed towards Ari and grabbed a bucket. Just as I was about to touch the magic-tool faucet.


    ¡°S-Stop!¡± Ari raised her voice in panic.


    Confused I asked.


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Umm, Yami it is better for you to not touch it.¡± She said while fidgeting in a somewhat gentle voice.


    Will it blow up or something? I tilted my head to the side.


    ¡°Why is that?¡±


    ¡°It will break because of your mana.¡±


    Break because of my mana? Does it do something like drain your mana and make it into water? That shouldn¡¯t be possible. Haha.


    ¡°Will it explode when I touch it due to it absorbing my mana or something?¡± I jokingly said, however, Ari did not move or even had a smile for that matter, she just slowly nodded¡­


    Ah well¡­ I guess I can¡¯t do it.


    I let Ari help me with filling the bucket, she looked at my body with sparkling eyes as if wanting to wash me but I decided to ignore it. As I was washing I noticed something¡­ There was no soap.


    ¡°Ari is there soap?¡± She just tilted her head.


    ¡°Yami, soap is an item only for nobles.¡±


    Wait... Is that how it was? I dropped my shoulders in disappointment. I kept washing while Ari was playing in the tub. ¡®This feels rather nice.¡¯ I relaxedly muttered. As I finished washing. Ari grabbed my hand and pulled me in with her.


    I slowly entered the tub with the warm water, it felt incredibly nice. I just relaxed my body submerging it from the chin down. ¡®This is bliss¡­ How can it be I never got to try this?!¡¯ I complained in my mind.


    ¡°Yami.¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    Ari was looking at me with a somewhat blushed face and dazzling eyes, however, she was fidgeting with both of her hands. ¡®Is she embarrassed?¡¯ As I was thinking I heard her stuttering.


    ¡°W-Will y-you let me touch your tail!¡±


    Ha? My tail? Wait¡­ I do have one now, don¡¯t I? Looking behind me surely enough it was just like a cat¡¯s tail. It was wiggling every now and then¡­ It was rather cute. I honestly forgot I had one¡­ I guess its fine for her to touch it however this is rather embarrassing.


    ¡°S-sure.¡±


    I turned around facing away from Ari when suddenly I felt a jolt. She was stroking my tail¡­ It felt way better than I thought it would, however, I would not say it would make me go ¡®Nyaa!¡¯ or something¡­ I kept happily swaying my tail every time she touched it. Wait... What is this?! My heart is beating faster and faster¡­


    Prrrr...


    Wait?! I am purring?! This is too embarrassing!


    I pulled my tail away from Ari and she looked rather upset from it. But I don¡¯t care, as good as that felt... I am not a cat! That is Fenri¡¯s role¡­ Wait, where¡¯s Fenri?


    We continued washing without saying a single word due to the previous interaction. I dried myself with one of the pelts next to the door and so did Ari she got dressed in the same clothes. I put on the same clothes I was wearing because honestly, they were incredibly clean. I am guessing they don¡¯t get dirty? That would be nice.


    ''I guess I can avoid using the ring seeing this is a small town? Besides, it feels like my lower back and head are continuously being pressed down by a mysterious force when I use it... It''s uncomfortable, it does not feel good.'' With those thoughts, I decided to put away the [Disguise] ring in my inventory. As we were walking into the main-room I heard scratching on the entrance door. What could it be?


    I decided to open the door.


    ¡°Fenri?¡±


    He was at the entrance. I was surprised. However, he was just looking at the ground and not wagging his tail. Could it be I left him outside?


    ¡°I am sorry Fenri.¡±


    Fenri heard this but ignored it and walked into the room, he seemed rather upset. He just laid down next to Aizen basically ignoring me. There was a single bed for Ari and me. She petted Fenri while he was on the ground. I would pet him too, but I don¡¯t think I should¡­ Seeing he was giving me mean looks.


    My head started hurting and I felt a little bit worn down.


    ''It is still so bright'' I muttered as I looked at the ceiling and I saw the magic-tools that looked like some type of crystal. They basically lit up the whole room. I guess we should sleep? Although sleeping like this might be annoying...


    I headed towards the bed and so did Ari, however, she followed me in a somewhat awkward and reluctant way.


    I arrived at the bed and laid down leaving some space for Ari. She got into bed and clapped? At that time the whole room went dark. ¡®Huh, rather convenient?¡¯ As I was muttering Ari whispered.


    ¡°Yami, I am sorry.¡±


    ¡°About?¡±


    I was at loss about what she was sorry. However, her voice did not change from the regretful tone she talked in.


    ¡°I-I know you shouldn¡¯t really touch a beastkin¡¯s tail. But I still asked you if I could and you accepted¡­ So I am sorry about it, I heard a beastkin¡¯s tail is something special for them.¡±


    Special? I can see why¡­ Yeah, never again¡­ Ari was silent I think she was waiting for my reply. I talked in a somewhat soft tone because it was mostly my fault in my opinion.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, just don¡¯t do it again.¡±


    Ari quietly agreed to not do it again. Seeing the whole room was dark now I was beginning to feel all of the fatigue from today and started dozing off. At that time I felt something warm press against me and wrap around me. It was Ari, she was hugging me.


    ¡°Ari?¡±


    I decided to ask her, however, I got no answer. I think she fell asleep. ¡®Well, I do not mind.¡¯ I muttered as I dozed off.


    Alice.


    Hey guys Azrie here. Thank you all for reading this far. I thought it was a great time to mention this but I have opened a Patreon you can now support me if you wish so. I am currently offering to read one chapter ahead. I have to say they are just the first draft so they are not as well edited as the ones I post here. I will add more chapters as I create a chapter buffer.


    I would also like to add that you can simply support me by clicking the favorite button or leaving a nice comment in general.


    Thank you all for reading.

 (Chpt. 20) Acceptance.

    Alice.


    I woke up to a knocking sound, it was coming from the door. I managed to turn around while still being hugged by Ari. She started to slowly open her eyes when she saw me looking at her while still embracing me. Her eyes shot open and her face turned bright red. She quickly let go of me while hearing the knocking on the door. She hurriedly got off from bed in a rush to the door. As I was getting up from bed Ari opened the door.


    ¡°Breakfast is here.¡±


    Said a calm and serene voice. I managed to peer to see who it was. The charming old lady was at the doorway, she noticed my peeking however she slightly glanced above me instead.


    ¡°Oh my, if it isn¡¯t a beastkin.¡±


    ¡°Please don¡¯t chase us away.¡±


    Ari hurriedly said in a pleading voice after hearing her reaction. However, the woman just looked at me curiously and said.


    ¡°Well, I do not mind beastkin. Besides you are customers. Interesting how I did not notice she was a beastkin when you girls first got here.¡±


    Ari breathed a sigh of relief after hearing her. ¡®Is discrimination as bad as getting thrown away?¡¯ I muttered.


    ¡°Well, I brought you girls breakfast for three and your wolf. Consider it an act of kindness.¡± She said as she pushed a wooden trolley into the room. I noticed the trolley had three dome lids and a sizable chunk of raw meat on a platter. As I was eyeing the food. The lady said in a somewhat more serious tone while looking at me.


    ¡°I do not mind beastkin however, there are people here that do. Please be careful young miss.¡±


    After saying that she left closing the door with her. Ari was just standing there unmoving. I didn¡¯t quite understand it. I got off from the bed and moved the trolley to the center of the room next to the table. I placed Fenri¡¯s meat next to him, he was still asleep.


    I moved the platters with their covers onto the table. Ari seemed to have recovered from whatever she was thinking and rushed to me and sat down, then removed the food cover. At that moment a pleasant and savory scent filled the room.


    ¡°Uhh.¡± Aizen groaned like an old man while waking up from the scent. As soon as she stood up she saw the source of the smell and sat next to Ari and dragged a platter in front of her. She also removed the lid and the same smell filled the room. Drooling I finally removed the lid and was charmed by the food I saw. It looked like a small fine cut of steak and a really soft bread that seemed to be just taken out of the oven. It also came with butter. It was not something I would have for breakfast, but it looked delicious.


    Aizen was eagerly eating the food. Ari was trying to be refined, but ultimately ended up eagerly eating. I pierced it easily with the fork, it let out some juices. I was drooling from the smell in itself. I brought it to my mouth and bit it. The meat was incredibly tender almost as if was melting in my mouth. Sadly I ran out of meat soon after. The bread was sweet and really soft, the heat that it was emanating was pleasant as it warmed my mouth. Fenri woke up and started eating.


    ¡°¡±¡±Ahh.¡±¡±¡± We all let satisfied voices as we finished the incredibly delicious breakfast. ¡®That was so good. Is this really a regular inn?¡¯ I satisfactorily muttered. Fenri seemed to be in a better mood after eating the meat, as he was wagging his tail. However, he still glared at me with a mean look. Is my wolf a tsundere or something?


    ¡°Well, I guess we go sightseeing.¡±


    ¡°... N-Nn.¡±


    Ari awkwardly nodded, she looked at me with worry but I did not mind it. Judging her reaction to the lady I think it was most likely because I was not wearing the ring. Aizen was looking at her plate with a grim face¡­ Ari was looking at Aizen and then suddenly her eyes sparkled making it look like she remembered something.


    Ari started tugging on Aizen¡¯s arm to bring her back. Her face became more normal now and she was looking at Ari while tilting her head.


    ¡°Aizen, what type of beast are you.¡± She asked the most troublesome question¡­ Aizen looked at her with wide-open eyes and then turned to me. She gave me a piercing gaze as if she was about to kill me, her shoulders were trembling. However, after a few seconds, she


    calmed down and asked.


    ¡°Yami, did you tell her?¡±


    ¡°Nn¡­¡± I slowly nodded.


    She grabbed her forehead and let out a sigh. A few more seconds went by. Ari was now next to Aizen looking at her with somewhat worried eyes. She stood up and grabbed Ari¡¯s shoulders.


    ¡°Ari, no matter what will I be the same Aizen to you?¡±


    ¡°Nn.¡±


    She instantly nodded. Seeing her reaction Aizen let out a sigh of relief and stopped grabbing her shoulders and reluctantly talked as she was sitting down.


    ¡°I am¡­ I was a dragon.¡± Ari froze and started muttering, then kept switching glances in-between me and Aizen, after repeating the same process for what felt like minutes Aizen started looking at the table and started fidgeting.


    ¡°But, you are still Aizen right?¡± Ari suddenly snapped back and asked Aizen, she instantly turned to see Ari in shock as if not believing her answer. However, seeing Ari¡¯s unchanging expression she relaxed and became more like usual.


    ¡°Yes, Ari I am still the same.¡±


    Ari¡¯s eyes sparkled and she looking at the ground.


    ¡°Umm, can you also take care of me?¡±


    ¡°I already am, otherwise I would not be here.¡±


    Aizen nonchalantly answered as if saying the obvious, Ari hearing this seemed to have somewhat moist eyes. She lovingly hugged Aizen. Aizen froze for a second from the unfamiliar experience but her eyes grew warm and hugged her back while caressing her head. ¡®I feel left out.¡¯ I dejectedly whispered to myself.


    * * *


    Ari and Aizen seemed to have grown closer to each other. Ari asked a lot of questions like the ones she asked me but, Aizen surprisingly only answered unimportant ones. We tidied up the room and placed all of the used food utensils and plates on the trolley. I spoke again.


    ¡°Well, I guess we should go sightseeing.¡±


    ¡°¡±Nn!¡±¡±


    Instead of the response, I got earlier this time the response was two cute girls cheerfully nodding. ¡®This lifestyle is not so bad.¡¯ I happily murmured.


    We were getting ready to leave the room making sure to not leave anything behind including Fenri. As we got into the hallway I patted Fenri and whispered into his ear.


    ¡®I am sorry about last night, I will make sure it never happens again.¡¯


    ¡®Woof.¡¯


    Fenri gave me a soft bark in response while wagging his tail¡­ Aside from being the first time he ever ¡®talked¡¯ is he a dog? Huh¡­ The mystery just continues¡­ We leisurely walked down the stairs, the dining hall looked kind of empty compared to yesterday. Some people curiously glanced at us and some of them fixed their gaze on me, instead of the usual warm smiles it was now being stared at as if I was an object that people wanted. I went somewhat stiff from it.


    We arrived at the bottom of the stairs and headed towards the counter with the old lady.


    ¡°Oh my, was the breakfast good.¡±


    ¡°¡±¡±Nn!¡±¡±¡± We all cheerfully nodded.


    ¡°I am glad.¡±


    Wait¡­ We are not here to say the breakfast was delicious! I decided to put the room key on the table. The lady innocently asked.


    ¡°Oh, you are leaving already?¡±


    ¡°No, we are just going to go sightseeing. We might come back.¡±


    As I finish my sentence I felt killing intent from behind¡­ Haha; The lady took the key and put it somewhere under the counter and nodded, then said in a firm voice.


    ¡°Thank you for your stay. We hope you come again.¡±


    ¡°¡±¡±... Yea....¡±¡±¡±


    We awkwardly said due to the sudden change of atmosphere on the lady. We walked towards the door with Fenri following us. Some people looked at the white wolf and smiled, others flinched and stopped giving me sharp gazes. Others just kept looking at me with hatred. ¡®Haa, does this have to do with the church or something? Well, I would not be surprised. I heard religion is scary.¡¯ I muttered as we were exiting the inn.


    We were now just right outside the inn. Some people just stared at me¡­ Why is everyone looking at me?


    ¡°Well, we should get meat I guess.¡± I casually said in a somewhat quiet tone because of the number of people looking at me. It makes me rather uncomfortable. Aizen and Ari hurriedly nodded. We headed to the central plaza again seeing that was where most businesses and shops were. My hearing was sharper than usual so I heard some people whispering to themselves things like: ¡®Why is that hairball here.¡¯ or ¡®What is one of those things doing here.¡¯ I never expected to be seen like that but I guess it cannot be helped.


    As we approached the plaza some people seemed to have recognized me and looked at me with wide-open eyes. Rather, they looked at my ears and tail with wide-open eyes. We arrived at the plaza and I suggested to go to a shack that was next to the adventurer¡¯s guild. It seemed that adventurers were frequently coming in and out of it, so I thought you could find something interesting there. Aizen agreed with the idea and Ari just nodded.


    As we were approaching the shack some adventurers looked at me with sharp eyes, others just looked at me with warm eyes oddly enough. ¡®I don¡¯t really understand how this works. Sigh.¡¯ I tiredly said. Basically, everyone that could see me in the plaza was looking at me. I just started ignoring it to the best of my abilities after a certain point. Once we managed to get inside it looked like a shop rather than some shabby shack.


    ¡°Welcome to the adventurer¡¯s guild sh-...¡± The lady paused as soon as she saw me enter with a big white wolf, however, she just seemed shocked rather than looking at me with hatred. The shop was rather empty with only some adventurers checking out some barrels that were full of second-hand weapons and they did not even notice we entered. We continued and arrived at the counter. The lady lovingly said while looking at me while ignoring Fenri.


    ¡°Oh my, if it isn¡¯t a catkin. Would you like some yarn?¡±


    ¡°Yarn?¡± I reflexively questioned.


    ¡°Yes, yarn I heard catkins love it.¡±


    I froze for a second and glanced at Ari in disbelief at what just heard, Ari nodded to the lady¡¯s declaration. Am I actually a cat?! What is going on¡­ I decided I had to decline the yarn offer.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want yarn, we actually came for meat.¡±


    ¡°Oh meat? We do sell it, we have dried and fresh meat. If you plan on traveling we recommend dried meat since fresh goes bad in one or two days.¡±


    The lady informed me. Well¡­ If it goes bad it is not really a problem, rather it can¡¯t be a problem because of my cheat skill inventory¡­ I mean considering people don¡¯t seem to have one it is rather a cheat, isn¡¯t it¡­


    ¡°We will get dried and fresh meat.¡± The lady nodded and pulled out different sized boxes from under the counter and placed them on the counter. I curiously inquired.


    ¡°Those are?¡±


    ¡°Well, we use these as a way to know how much meat you want. Whichever you select you get about the same amount of meat that we can fit in the box you selected.¡±


    The lady said while looking at me waiting for me to pick a box. Well let¡¯s see, the biggest one is about half my height. Seeing we have Fenri with us we probably need a lot of meat.


    ¡°That one, also can it be filled with only fresh meat?¡± I pointed at the biggest box while asking, the lady froze for a second however she glanced beside me and looked at Fenri. As if reaching an understanding she did not say anything.


    ¡°Well, which box would you like to be filled with dried meat?¡± The lady asked me, making me look at the boxes once again. I chose a box that was around half the size of the biggest one. It was still rather big. The lady nodded and put down the boxes from the counter. She went into a room behind her.


    After a few minutes, a man with chiseled muscles came carrying two boxes. They looked rather heavy, he placed them on the counter making a thunderous sound and the counter creaked. Some of the adventurers glanced at what all of the noise was about. They froze when they saw me, but they quickly returned to doing whatever they were doing.


    The lady came back from the room and thanked the man.


    ¡°That would be one gold-coin, sadly we cannot help you carry it.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s fine.¡±


    I nonchalantly answered while giving the lady the gold-coin, she seemed to be rather shocked for some reason. ¡®Looking at the boxes they are rather big, do I carry them with Aizen or just put them in my inventory and pretend nothing happened?¡¯ Haa¡­ Both of my options are bad¡­ Well, I guess I will go for the easier one.


    I touched both of the boxes and put them in my inventory, but it kind of looked like they just vanished from existence to other people. The lady started trembling and sweating while looking at me.


    ¡°I-Is that an item bag?¡± I quietly nodded which made the lady freeze. We left the shop without caring too much about it.

 (Chpt. 21) About death.

    Alice.


    ¡®I mean are item bags really that rare?¡¯ I muttered as we were leaving the shop. Outside everyone was looking at us the same way as before.


    This is rather annoying, also looking at our spendings. Five silver a day for an inn, although it probably was on the more expensive side. Two gold coins, used. So that leaves me with one of the blue coins, one gold coin, and ten silver and bronze coins. Well, considering we have been here for one night, isn¡¯t that quite a lot of coins used? I wonder how much you can earn by adventuring?


    ¡°Should we go to the adventurers guild?¡± I suggested.


    ¡°Well, I can do whatever.¡±


    Aizen said while shrugging her shoulders Ari did the same thing without saying anything. Well, I guess we are going to the guild now? As we started walking people just kept looking at me specifically¡­ Some kids pointed their hands at me and their moms whispered something in their ear. I could not quite hear what they were whispering but seeing they were looking at me with a sharp gaze while doing so, it was probably quite unfriendly.


    ¡®I guess it can¡¯t be helped.¡¯ I dejectedly muttered as we were getting close to the adventurer¡¯s guild. We kept leisurely walking without saying anything due to the unfriendly atmosphere around us. Fenri decided to stay outside. Entering the guild there was a lot of people around. And various boards on the walls. I assume it was because it was morning. We arrived in front of a receptionist, before we said something her smile kind of twitched when seeing my swaying tail.


    ¡°Umm, we would like to take a request.¡±


    ¡°Sorry girly, only registered adventurers can take requests.¡± She said in a somewhat cold tone as if crushing my dreams. I pulled out the copper tag I received and showed it to her. The receptionist¡¯s eyes shook for a second, however, her professional smile remained unchanging.


    ¡°Well seeing you are here without a request really makes me wonder how you are copper rank.¡±


    ¡°We registered yesterday.¡± I answered nonchalantly. The receptionist froze for a second and then talked with unkind words.


    ¡°Well I do not know who you bribed, but the person that registered you should tell you about requests. Who registered you?¡±


    I looked around on the counter until I fixed my eyes on the brunette receptionist from yesterday. I quietly pointed at her without saying anything, the receptionist noticed who I was pointing at.


    ¡°Sigh, Well¡­ Yeah, she is like that.¡± She said with dropped shoulders. It seemed the other receptionist did not like her very much, seeing she nodded in agreement to what the receptionist in front of us was saying.


    ¡°So you want to know how requests work?¡±


    ¡°Nn.¡± I slowly nodded to her question.


    She straightened herself and after a brief pause began explaining in a firm voice.


    ¡°Seeing you are a [Copper] ranked adventurer, it means you can take quests up to [Gold] rank, however, we strongly advise against it, if you fail a request two ranks higher than your current rank you are expelled from the guild.


    The boards have a color marker on the corners. This color matches with an adventurer rank. As you can already guess the requests are divided by boards and rank. Once chosen a request you take it to a receptionist and they will register it on your guild card. If you fail to complete a request you get penalized.


    I don''t think need to mention this, but the requests are those sheets of paper on the boards. Any questions?¡±


    We just shook our head to her explanation, we left the reception counter after thanking her. With my sharp eyesight, I could see some of the requests and they seemed to have the reward as I was looking around I glanced at the gold-rank board and saw a particular quest.


    [Horned-dragon subjugation.]


    Description: A dragon has settled in the mountain range, it has been judged to be a threat to merchants and villages.


    [Reward: One mithril coin and five cobalt coins.]


    ¡®Money¡­ I want it... ¡® With such thoughts, I was looking at that quest with piercing eyes Aizen noticed and followed my gaze. Surprisingly or unsurprisingly she seemed to be all-in into the idea of taking down a dragon seeing her eyes sparkled. I whispered into her ear seeing this.


    ¡°Are you fine with killing another dragon?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ It is just a puny low-rank dragon, besides I want to do a slight experiment.¡±


    She said with an evil grin. Ari just tilted her head not realizing we were even talking about a quest. We approached the desolate quest board. It seemed that most adventurers took [Copper] requests and very rarely [Silver] requests. But I didn¡¯t care, it is all about the money¡­ Taking the request to the receptionist from before her smile basically fractured and a vein popped on her forehead.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t I just explain to you the consequences of taking a request way higher than your rank! And a dragon? Why is it even on the gold board, this should be on the obsidian one¡­¡± She complained to us.


    ¡°So can we take it?¡± I casually asked the receptionist seemed to be pretty annoyed.


    ¡°Haa, you will regret it¡­ I will arrange a guide.¡±


    ¡°A guide?¡± I reflexively questioned, the receptionist at this point just relaxed her shoulders and talked with a more stern tone.


    ¡°A guide, to take you to the dragon. You girls will have to protect him. He will also confirm the subjugation¡±


    ¡°Ahh¡­ Sure that is fine.¡± I said reaching an understanding. At this point, the receptionist just stopped talking and placed her hand forward wanting us to hand her something. Ah, didn¡¯t she say something of registering on guild card when explaining quests? I gave her my guild card and Aizen followed. She used some magic on it but the card remained unchanging.


    ¡°You have taken the subjugation request for a horned-dragon with a party of two. Please come tomorrow morning to meet your guide. He will be standing in front of the guild with a travel backpack.¡±


    She said with the firm voice from before, but what is with that brief description. ¡®Well, I guess we should notice if she says it so briefly.¡¯ Reassuring myself I whispered. The receptionist gave us our guild cards and remained unmoving. I guess we should leave then.


    As we were walking to leave I heard a chair screech, making us stop to curiously look who it was. Looking at the source it was... A lumberjack? A somewhat medium-sized beard with a mustache, it looked like a lumberjack bear. He also wielded an axe holding it over his shoulder with chiseled muscles. He was probably just as tall as the guildmaster.


    ¡°Girls, how about you take me a [Gold] rank adventurer with you on the subjugation. I will take a payment cut.¡±


    ¡°Declined.¡± I emotionlessly said¡­ Payment cut? I am going to cut you if you steal what is mine.


    ¡°Now, now. Don¡¯t be so hasty I just don¡¯t want to see you girls die.¡± He persuaded.


    ¡°Then you can come with us, if you kill it you get the payment if we kill it you don¡¯t get anything.¡± The man¡¯s smile somewhat cracked from hearing this, however, he remained calm.


    ¡°Then it is a deal. I will meet you girls with your guide.¡± He calmly said, sealing the deal and he went back to sit. Weirdly enough he did not seem to mind I was a beastkin. I just hope it¡¯s not a big deal or anything. Not wearing the ring makes me feel more relaxed.


    We walked outside the guild when suddenly I saw a little ginger girl with wearing dirty rags, the girl was overall pretty dirty. However, she did not look malnourished despite being an orphan or looking like one. The girl was running at us with a look full of worry and fear. Until she was standing in front of me and said in a trembling voice.


    ¡°P-please help me, I-I do not know who else to ask.¡± She said with wet eyes.


    ¡°What do you need help with.¡± I nonchalantly answered. It is not like I will go out of my way to save every single little girl I see, it must be in special circumstances. I think¡­ Maybe last time was on a whim? As I was thinking I heard the girl again.


    ¡°My d-dad is, i-is...¡±


    ¡°I will help you.¡± I said with a warm smile and patted her head. Her eyes somewhat sparkled, however, her face remained grim. She straightened herself and talked in a somewhat firmer voice.


    ¡°P-please follow me.¡±


    We followed the girl in a rush seeing she was frantically running, we ended up going into an alleyway, the wooden walls of the houses started getting darker and dirtier, some of them smelled pretty bad. We weaved through a lot of alleyways until we found ourselves at the slums, the houses were made out of rags with sticks rather than having actual walls. As we turned the corner the girl was no longer there.


    ¡°Huh¡­¡± So the girl is gone, Ari is panting and Aizen just shrugged when I looked at her. Fenri is near I think? I do remember him following along. As I was thinking a guy dressed in black rags suddenly turned the corner and said in a pretty unfriendly voice.


    ¡°Ohoh, what do we have here?¡± As he said that more people showed up wearing the same type of rags. Some of them came from behind some came from inside the tent-like houses. ¡®It would be nice being able to sense people instead of killing intent only.¡¯ I muttered. The thugs or bandits in rags. Pulled out swords and some of them pulled some staffs I would say there were around ten people surrounding us. I heard some muttering from some of the bandits they sounded rather astonished. ¡®Huh, she really managed to bring that rare beastkin and her companions.¡¯ Hearing this I stiffened.


    ¡°Do you want to make me a slave?¡± I curiously asked.


    ¡°That is right furball, so let us capture you.¡±


    Hearing this Aizen moved Ari in-between both of us. Before I could do anything Fenri jumped a bandit from behind.


    ¡°Just what are you do- AGHH.¡± The bandit let out an ear screeching scream, making me reflexively cover my ears, except the noise, did not stop. The scream subsided and I saw some blood splattered I decided to not look at the gore that probably unfolded in-front of me. Looking at the other places where bandits were. They were gone, I think they ran away.


    Aizen just shrugged at how quickly the situation ended, Ari was trembling and looking at Fenri¡­ She called out for me with a shaky voice.


    ¡°Y-Yami.¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°H-how can you be fine after watching someone die?¡±


    Hearing her question made me realize a lot of things. Ari saw the bandit get mauled and I didn¡¯t, but I did watch multiple of them get massacred when I first met Ari. Yet all I felt was slight discomfort looking at a corpse. I did not feel anything when watching them die. It was not unpleasant or pleasant if I had to describe it, it was sort of like watching a PVP battle in a game. It kind of just happens... It makes me question. ¡®How can I be fine with taking a life?¡¯ I do not know if I am fine with it, I just feel indifference. If I do not know such people why should I care about their life and death? I know some people hearing my train of thought would probably think its wrong in so many ways. But¡­


    ¡°Y-Yami?¡± Ari pulled me back from her thoughts with her stuttery voice.


    ¡°Ari, I am sorry¡­ I was thinking, however, I do not think I can answer your question.¡± I sincerely said to her, she seemed to have a weird face but nodded while her limbs were still shaking. I guess we should leave. As I was looking for Fenri that was covered in blood, he came back all wet however, there were no traces of blood on him anymore. Seeing I did not know the way out of the slums I decided to ask Fenri.


    ¡°Fenri, can you get us back to the inn?¡±


    ¡°Woof.¡±


    Fenri barked? And started walking, we quietly followed him until we found ourselves in the plaza. We headed towards the inn, as we were walking in a desolate street, a guy that had a black aura walked into view coming from behind a house. He clicked his tongue and began speaking in visible annoyance.


    ¡°Tch, those guys failed I guess I will have to do it myself.¡±


    Fenri growled and as he was about to jump on him. Ari yelled.


    ¡°Stop! I-I do not want to see more people die¡­ Please.¡±


    She pleaded to Fenri, The bandit dark bandit was unmoving.


    ¡°Sigh, I guess I will have to do it myself.¡± Aizen stepped forward while talking in a somewhat tired voice.


    ¡°As you wish... Die!¡± The bandit exclaimed as he rushed Aizen with two daggers, he was fairly fast. I assume he had around four digits in agility. However, Aizen looked at him as if it was a joke. To be fair, by fairly fast I mean he does not completely seem frozen in time to me like some other guys. Aizen quickly raised her finger and pointed it at him.


    ¡°[Mind-Break]¡± At that moment the bandit froze and started holding his head in pain.


    ¡°AAAAAAAAAA!!!¡± He let out an ear-piercing scream and started rolling on the ground while foaming from his mouth, he passed out shortly after.


    ¡®What is with her spell names¡­¡¯ I muttered at Aizen¡¯s spell names which are basic nouns more often than not. I did not mind the bandit passing out, Ari seemed somewhat horrified by the bandit passing out however she breathed a sigh of relief once she noticed he did not die.


    When we first entered some people looked at me with hatred but I just completely ignored it. I silently gave the five silver coins to the old lady without saying anything she gave us the same room key without saying anything looking at Ari¡¯s grim face. Fenri quickly followed and we entered the same room from the morning. It was all clean now. I sat on a chair and Aizen also silently sat. Ari did the same. She was fidgeting with her hands under the table while looking at the wooden at the polished wooden surface.


    ¡°H-How many people have you two killed?¡± Ari suddenly asked in a quiet voice with a slight stutter. Aizen scratched her cheek and went into deep thought. Ari slowly raised her head to see the reason for her silence. She just saw Aizen deeply think about the question, she then looked at me for an answer.


    ¡°Well, I have killed zero people unless you count Fenri killing things¡­ Then it''s probably less than ten.¡± I casually answered, however, I wonder how she will react. Unexpectedly she breathed a sigh of relief hearing my answer. She then turned to see Aizen who was still thinking. Finally reaching a conclusion she said.


    ¡°I lost count.¡±


    ¡°¡±...¡±¡±


    Silence filled the room¡­


    Damned dragon! At least pretend to be innocent. I smacked her head for the shameless answer. Ari was muttering things and eventually became silent. She whispered something in Fenri¡¯s ear, Fenri looked rather sad from killing someone in-front of Ari but I guess he just wanted to protect me. The day ended without any conversations. The room was just filled with silence the entire time. We did not want to go out, we did not want to talk.


    * * *


    I decided to ask Yami and Aizen about death. Surprisingly Yami which I thought was death herself when I first met her, has not killed people with her own hands. However¡­ Aizen despite being so silly at times¡­ Lost count? Did she destroy kingdoms or something? No, there is no way. She just said she was a Dragon before, Dragons do kill a lot of people. Besides, it is not like she was the ultimate dragon or something. However, her magic¡­  I have seen it only twice even though she probably has used it more... She just points her finger at people and says the spell, no element happens they just suffer some type of physical effect¡­ What attribute is that? Well¡­ I am not a mage so I guess I don¡¯t know. I just hope it is not [Neutral]. That would be bad. I hope what that man said wasn¡¯t true. They shouldn¡¯t have anything to do with him anyways...


    However, there is something that bothers me... Why do they take care of me?

 (Chpt. 22) Guide.

    The next morning Ari seemed to be worried about something, seeing she looked at us quite often. However, she did not say anything. We ate the delicious breakfast that was brought to our room and took a bath. This time Ari did not ask to touch me. Aizen also took a bath, but at first. She said something like. ¡®I don¡¯t need baths, besides it¡¯s not like it will feel good.¡¯ I managed to convince her and she reluctantly took the bath. I wore the same clothes as usual with my cloak.


    I decided to tease Aizen a bit.


    ¡°Did you like the bath?¡±


    ¡°Mmph!¡±


    She made a cute sound while pouting, ¡®Is she a tsundere or something now.¡¯ I muttered due to her reaction.


    After tidying up the room like yesterday and making sure we don¡¯t leave anything. we decided to leave the room. Oddly enough we have not seen a single person in the hallway since we came to this inn. Going downstairs I am greeted with the same hostile stares. Arriving in front of the counter I handed the key to the lady.


    ¡°Oh, you are leaving?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, we took a subjugation request.¡±


    The lady hearing my words stiffened, but quickly recovered.


    ¡°I did not know you girls were adventurers. Take care.¡±


    She said in a lovely voice, we turned around and just walked to the entrance and left. People kept giving me weird stares, I had gotten used to it at that point.


    As we were walking down the street towards the main plaza. I noticed the bandit was still knocked out. However, there were guards surrounding him. Some of them saw me and flinched, but did not say anything. They put wooden-cuffs on the bandit and took him towards the gate. Well, I wonder what will happen to him. Not my problem.


    Arriving at the adventurer¡¯s guild. I notice the lumberjack guy wearing black leather armor and a little girl beside him. As we got close to him. He began talking.


    ¡°Oh, you girls are late. This will be our guide.¡± He waved his hand to drag our attention to the girl. Looking at her she was indeed carrying a travel backpack like the receptionist said she would.


    ¡°U-umm, nice to meet you. My name is Dan.¡± The little girl timidly said while fidgeting with both of her leather-gloved hands. She was wearing some light armor and had short black hair and eyes of the same color. However, Dan? Isn¡¯t that a male name? Well, whatever.


    ¡°Nice to meet you, I am Yami and this one here is Aizen.¡± I presented myself and then gestured towards Aizen. However, Dan seemed to have a question.


    ¡°What about the little girl behind you?¡±


    She said while peering in the space between Aizen and me.


    ¡°Oh, she is Ari. She is not really an adventurer but we will take her with us.¡±


    ¡°Wait, wait, wait. We cannot take her with us! Who is gonna protect her.¡±


    The lumberjack suddenly joined the conversation and complained to us.


    ¡°We will protect her.¡±


    I said with a firm voice. The lumberjack sighed, he seemed hesitant to take Ari with us, but decided to not say a thing seeing how a lot of people were looking at him curiously. I mean he was surrounded by basically four little girls.  He was looking at Fenri and then tilted his head.


    ¡°Do we have a tamer?¡±


    ¡°I am the tamer.¡±


    I said while raising my hand. He just looked at me and then said.


    ¡°You know you can¡¯t really tame the dragon right?¡±


    ¡°Yea, we are going to subjugate it.¡±


    ¡°Ah, whatever I cannot guarantee your protection.¡±


    He sighed while saying it, is this man even strong? I mean, he said he was a gold-ranked adventurer, but how strong is that even? Well, no use in thinking about it. This quest is probably good for us anyways.


    ¡°Well let¡¯s go to the horned-dragon then,¡± Dan said interrupting my thoughts we started walking towards the north gate. The city was like a big circle, it had four gates on each of the cardinal directions, we entered from the south gate when we first came here. Surprisingly our inn was somewhat close to the north-gate. While we were walking around, people gave us curious stares, due to the uniqueness of our group. ¡®I wonder what is with everyone looking at me with hate, it seems worse than in [Zeileheim], or maybe it is basically the same and I just never realized how noticeable it was.¡¯ As I was thinking I heard a voice.


    ¡°Why do you guys have a beastkin?¡± Looking at the source it was a guard from the gate. We were already at the gate¡­ It looks like I thought for too long.


    ¡°Well, I am just helping her with a subjugation request.¡± The lumberjack said while scratching the back of his head. The guard noticed he didn¡¯t know and started muttering, I could somewhat pick-up what he said, apparently, beastkins are not allowed into towns around here. I guess that is why people seemed to dislike me so much, although I still don¡¯t understand why they dislike beastkin, I mean. In the game it was just a setting, however seeing this is an actual world shouldn¡¯t there need to be an actual reason?


    We were walking on the dirt road for carriages with Dan leading the way. When suddenly the lumberjack asked.


    ¡°Come to think of it, what are you girls'' ranks?¡±


    ¡°[Copper]¡± Aizen answered, hearing this the man just stopped walking. Dan noticed that the man stopped and she just stopped and looked at us while tilting her head. The man after a second started shaking, I could see veins build-up on his arms.


    ¡°Are you girls trying to die!¡± He shouted at us.


    ¡°You know you don¡¯t have to come right?¡± Aizen dismissed the man. Seeing her carefree answer the man snapped. He was shaking, I could feel his bloodlust.


    ¡°I have had enough, who do you girls think you are?! Especially you.¡±


    He said while pointing his finger at me.


    ¡°What makes you think a mere beastkin can even negotiate? You are just abusing from my good-will.¡±


    ¡°Well, you don¡¯t have to come, besides what does this have to do with me being a different race?¡± The man was about to explode from my reply, but he suddenly relaxed and had an evil-grin on his face. At that moment I thought he was going to try to attack usm but surprisingly he just said.


    ¡°You girls can have the dragon, I did not want to see you die. However, I don¡¯t care anymore.¡± He said while turning back in the direction to the town, we probably had been walking for ten-minutes so it wasn¡¯t much of a loss for him. All of us shrugged our shoulders, however, Dan was just looking at us.


    ¡°Umm, you girls know I can¡¯t fight? I might look like a strong man but I am just a guide or a scout.¡±


    ¡°¡±¡±...¡±¡±¡±


    Wait... Man?! How does that even work¡­ He is basically the perfect girl. Aside from the short-hair, I think she is extremely cute, Is this some kind of fetish? Ari was just as shocked as I was, Aizen did not seem to care.


    ¡°I thought you were a girl.¡± The tactless dragon casually said while looking at him.


    ¡°Haha¡­ I get that a lot¡­¡± He said with a bitter smile while scratching the back of his head.


    ¡°Well, we can beat the dragon. Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± I tried changing the atmosphere by reassuring him. He did not seem to believe it but turned around to keep walking. ¡®Come to think of it the receptionist did say ¡®he¡¯ and not ¡®she¡¯ while talking about our guide.¡¯ I murmured to myself from the realization.


    We kept walking, the plains around us gradually changed to a forest and from far-away, I could see some mountains next to the road. Dan was looking at the mountains and pointed his finger to the base of the mountain and informed us.


    ¡°That is where the target is.¡±


    We were gradually approaching the base of the mountain, we could see some forcefully cut-down trees near the mountain. Leisurely walking Dan noticed something.


    ¡°Well, certainly this is the territory of a dragon, but horned-dragons don¡¯t destroy trees around them unless it is a different variant of the dragon. In that case, then we should probably turn back.¡±


    ¡°Horned-dragon, special horned-dragon. Whatever it may be, it is just a horned-dragon.¡± Aizen said while looking down on the species in general. Dan noticed her brimming confidence and decided to not persuade any further.


    Arriving at the base of the mountain I noticed something, rather everyone noticed. It was a cave, it was probably around five times my height, and could probably fit three carriages side to side. Overall, it was a really wide cave. I could faintly hear some snorting coming from a beast inside.


    ¡°Well, here we are. I cannot go inside, but you just have to go inside and kill it.¡± Dan nonchalantly said while giving us a thumbs up.


    ¡°If you are not going inside can we leave you with Ari?¡± I said while pushing Ari towards Dan. He thought for a second and nodded.


    ¡®You also wait here.¡¯ I whispered to Fenri¡¯s ear. He walked next to Ari and laid down.


    ¡°Are you sure about this?¡± Dan asked.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± I dismissed Dan¡¯s concern and started walking with Aizen into the cave.


    Yami and Aizen casually went into the cave. I could hear some roaring however it ended fairly quickly. A few minutes went by and they were still inside the cave. I was kind of tired of waiting when suddenly I heard Dan¡¯s voice.


    ¡°Ari was it? How can it be that you are not worried about them?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ I honestly do not think they can die even to a dragon.¡±


    I said with difficulty, I mean seriously. Yami does not seem very strong in terms of combat seeing she does not carry a single weapon but Fenri is scarry. I am sure he could probably take the dragon itself. That time when he got attacked by the gold-ranked adventurer he did not move and the sword shattered¡­ How does that even work? Isn¡¯t that some seriously powerful special skill? And Aizen¡­ I mean considering she is a dragon, does she even have a rival? Besides, I have never heard of a dragon that can cast magic, although I am still at doubt if it truly is magic or a special skill. Kind of like a dragon¡¯s breath.


    Also while I am happy that Yami and Aizen told me about themselves somehow¡­ It just feels like its incomplete? I mean seriously, I forgot to ask her why she was so good at smithing. When I saw her smith that dagger... It was magical. Unlike her usual carefree attitude, she seemed to be truly invested in doing so and every time she hammered seemed to have a meaning. Besides, what is with the ¡®I killed monsters¡¯ answer, I mean monsters do offer a lot of growth for levels, however¡­ Did she have a death-wish or something? Killing monsters is the worst way to raise one''s level!


    ¡°A¡­ y...?¡±


    I was interrupted by Dan looking at me somewhat worriedly¡­ I heard Dan again.


    ¡°Ari are you okay?¡±


    ¡°Ah, yes¡­ I was thinking.¡±


    I answered truthfully, Dan noticed this and turned away and looked at the cave. He seemed to be thinking of something.


    ¡°Are you sure they are fine? I mean they have not come out yet¡­¡±


    Dan said in a somewhat worried tone. I decided to try to reassure him.


    ¡°Well, they should be fine. I don¡¯t think most dragons can kill them.¡±


    ¡°The way you say that makes me think they are [Mithril] ranked adventurers¡­¡±


    ¡°Well, I do not really understand it myself.¡± I said while scratching my head.


    I mean, even though they told me a lot of things that did not seem like lies. It feels like there is a way bigger picture. Yami seemed to not be shocked by the master craftsman but, she was shocked at him having a disciple. Aizen did not seem to mind killing another dragon mercilessly. Although, I do not know what kind of dragon is in the position to talk down on other dragons¡­


    ¡°Well, I will go check inside seeing how long this is taking.¡± Dan suddenly said.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you can¡¯t go inside?¡±


    ¡°Well... I am required to do so when they don¡¯t come back.¡±


    He said with a hard expression scratching the back of his head while looking at the sleeping Fenri, his expression seemed to be slightly dark.


    ¡°Umm I am sure this might not sound very reassuring, but they will come back soon I think.¡±


    Hearing this Dan had a wry smile.


    ¡°If you say so¡­ I guess we can take sit down and chat. How does that sound?¡±


    I agreed to Dan¡¯s forced suggestion, and we started chatting about multiple things. I could not tell Dan much about Yami and Aizen, and I am personally not that interesting¡­ However, Dan is actually an adult?! I thought he was a girl that was like maybe younger than Yami¡­ Apparently, the dragon is around level 50? That is pretty strong but¡­ I am sure Aizen can kill it by looking at it¡­ What level is Aizen anyways? Also while I have never heard the names ¡®Yami¡¯ or ¡®Aizen¡¯ isn¡¯t ¡®Aizen¡¯ a male name? It sounds like one anyway¡­


    Also seeing how friendly Aizen and Yami are towards each other why am I here?


    Alice.

 (Side S. 4) The academy.

    The garden is beautiful as ever. However, there are thoughts I cannot ignore.


    What¡¯s the point in being a [Mage]? Well¡­ What is the point of getting a class in general? It¡¯s not like I need to be strong, at least not now. The world is full of mysteries I would like to see. Maybe if I could just see what is the limits of magic. A fireball is cool but I want to see something else. Maybe, just maybe I could aim for that. I wonder what is the world like out there. I wo-.


    ¡°L-¡­ C-¡­l.¡±


    I heard something.


    ¡°Lady C-...l.¡±


    Wait someone is calling for me? Where am I? I open my eyes but¡­ Why is everything so dark? Opening my eyes again I can see now.


    ¡°You are finally awake. You need to get to the academy, it is our duty assigned by your father.¡±


    ¡®Oh, I was asleep... ¡® I muttered to the realization. I got up and my hand was taken by the maid. She hastily helped me put on a sailor uniform, normally one does not need to wear a uniform but when I told my dad, he said. ¡®Sorry, but you must keep up appearances for the sake of our family.¡¯ His voice was pretty cold.


    Gerard brought breakfast to my room. I did not have time to enjoy it seeing I had to hurry to be there on time. The maid urged me to leave because otherwise, Father would be mad. ¡®What¡¯s the point in this anyways.¡¯ I muttered as I was reaching the entrance door.


    I heard the door close behind me, I was alone now. For some reason, I must go to the academy alone which I didn''t quite understand. Leisurely walking on gravel I could somewhat see all the blooming flowers of the garden however I could not admire them because of the lack of time.


    Reaching the gate, the armored-guard opened the way for me and bowed.


    ¡°Please take care.¡± The guard sent me off in a soft voice.


    Walking out of the noble residential area, some people curiously looked at me. I waved my hand at people I recognized, walking down the cobblestone road for quite a while. The houses started changing from noble ones to commoner ones and then there were no houses, the ground eventually changed to some type of polished marble. Lifting my head I could now see the royal castle. It is quite imposing however I did not come to the castle. I came to the building in front of it.


    Two imposing, rectangular three-stories marble buildings with one entrance. Surprisingly the entrance was fairly normal despite the building being so intimidating. The white-marbled buildings would reflect the sun with their snow-like surface. I could see some bright blue golden-trimmed banners with the royal family crest on them. A building on the left and a building on the right separated by a marble fountain. Honestly, so much white hurt my eyes.


    I went into the right building seeing the left building was for laboratories and teachers only. Going up the stairs at the end of the hallway to go to the third floor where my class is. I had no rush, other kids were also leisurely walking, some of them in uniforms, some of them wearing robes, some just wearing leather armor as if they were about to go to subjugate a monster.


    Opening the creaking door for students and peering down on the classroom I noticed everyone¡¯s gazes were focused on me. I slowly closed the door, and silently walked down the stairs to sit on a chair behind a desk in the front row. Seeing I needed to pay the most attention I possibly can to the teacher. Wait¡­ Where is the teacher? I won-


    Suddenly my thoughts were interrupted by a loud bang coming from the door at the bottom of the classroom. I instinctively glanced at the teacher door. There was a teacher I didn¡¯t recognize.


    Clumsily, he starts to walk to the desk in front of the classroom, somehow not tripping down on the unkempt and loose robe he was wearing. He had messy bright green hair and was wearing some squared black-framed glasses. He was holding his head in pain the entire time. I noticed something once he took a sit behind the desk. Pointy ears¡­


    What is an elf doing here?! Aren¡¯t elves the very best in magic? What am I going to do?! I don¡¯t even have the [Mage] class¡­ Although looking at him¡­ He seems drowsy seeing how he is struggling to keep his head straight, and he has been massaging his forehead with his left hand the entire time he has been here.


    Slowly but surely the elf looked at the entire classroom and stopped massaging his forehead. Straightening himself he began talking, although his tone wasn¡¯t consistent at all.


    ¡°I am your teacher, my name? DOESN¡¯T MATTER! I am here to teach you not to be friendss¡­ Now! Who here has the [Mage] class here?¡±


    After the entire class froze and flinched by his harsh and inconsistent tone, they slowly raised their hands. I noticed something¡­ I was the only one that hadn''t raised their hand. Looking back at the elf he fixed his sharp gaze on me and was mumbling something. I started sweating.


    Suddenly he jolted from his seat.


    ¡°YOU! The little girl there.¡± He exclaimed while pointing his finger at me.


    ¡°Y-yes?!¡± What do I do?!


    ¡°Why do you not have the [Mage] class?¡± His voice was cold and eerie.


    ¡°Umm¡­ I don¡¯t know.¡± My voice shrank at the last part however his ears twitched when hearing my answer. I could see a vein pop on his forehead and his fist began shaking. However, he did not continue talking. After sitting down for a few seconds and breathing in and out. He stood up again, however his shaking fist was not gone.


    ¡°WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON¡¯T KNOW?! IS THIS SOME TYPE OF JOKE TO YOU?!¡±


    ¡°U-umm.¡±


    ¡°I COME HERE, ME, AN ELF. AND YOU WANT ME TO TEACH YOU MAGIC WHEN YOU DON¡¯T EVEN HAVE THE MAGE CLASS?!¡±


    He kept swinging his arms and complaining at me, at first some of the people were laughing behind me, however. They eventually went silent and after a few more seconds they started whispering to themselves, I could feel their pity from behind. Eventually, the elf seemed to regain his composure. And sat on his chair again eventually he began class without even standing up to write on the board behind him.


    ¡°Do you guys know the classification of Magic spells?¡±


    We all shook our heads considering we were barely learning about mana detection and manipulation, so there was no way for us to know about the classification despite how basic it is. You could acquire the [Mage] class simply by learning mana detection and manipulation I had yet to learn either of them despite trying for years. Apparently, it would take quite a while to be able to do it even for people here. Normally a student here would acquire the class after trying for about three years. This is my fifth year on this simple task...


    ¡°Sigh¡­ I guess I will have to explain it. Listen here, spells are classified by their power and mana consumption. There are six tiers of spells.¡± He paused for a second and stood up turning to his board and began writing with his finger.


    [Basic]


    [Intermediate]


    [Advanced]


    [Arcane]


    [Legendary]


    After writing all of those he stopped. And turned to us and began speaking in a cold voice again.


    ¡°There is six, however, the last tier is not relevant, seeing it¡¯s the [Forbidden] tier. This tier goes against the fundamentals and laws of magic. It is said that all of the spells are of [Neutral] attribute however no one really knows how the attribute looks. Therefore it is pretty irrelevant, seeing there have been very few cases of these spells being used. The last time was a few decades ago. [Neutral] Is also called the attribute of death. So please avoid it.¡±


    He sat down again and began speaking about the spell tiers. Apparently, even if you learned a [Legendary] spell you wouldn''t be able to use it if you did not have the [Grand Mage] class, which is apparently a class a person can only acquire at their third class and need [Mage] and [Archmage] class in short.


    So if I became a level 40 [Mage] I would barely be able to use Advanced magic and wanting to go further I would need to be an archmage. I just wonder what is so special about magic that people go to such lengths to get more than one class for it. I learned a lot but I just wonder what is so special about classes. The only reason I would want a class is if I wanted to kill monsters or something or become a renowned craftsman of sorts. I have concluded that it is pointless until I am proven otherwise.


    Often thinking to myself what life is about,  maybe it is just about being a tool for my family? I would certainly like to go and see the world out there at least once or find a reason to dedicate myself to a class, being classless is not that bad. I can at least chose what I would like, I would certainly like to see the best a certain class can offer. I don¡¯t think if you told me. ¡®Hey, mage can shoot fire.¡¯ Will convince me. However, if you show me something spectacular like shooting fire. I will be more drawn to it, that is how I like to think anyways.


    The elf after taking some notes looked at me. I started sweating again, I do not want him to shout at me again.


    ¡°Well, since you don¡¯t have the [Mage] class I assume at least you know magic theory like when was magic first created?¡±


    ¡°I-I don¡¯t.¡±


    The elf paused and looked at me with narrow and sharp eyes. I gulped.


    ¡°DO YOU EVEN WANT TO BECOME A MAGE?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE!¡±


    ¡°I-I wa-¡± I was interrupted by his yelling again.


    ¡°NOTHING, LEAVE NOW!¡± He was looking at me with a piercing gaze, I unsteadily got off from my seat and left through the student¡¯s door. Everyone was looking at me with pitiful eyes. Outside the door, I could hear him beginning his lecture again. Sure enough, he began explaining the theory and how magic was created.


    ¡°HAH? What do you mean, aren¡¯t you the god-awful teacher?! Asking me for things I shouldn¡¯t know in the first place!¡± I kept complaining as I was going down the stairs, seeing that everyone but me was still in their classes. Fuming and stomping I found myself out of the academy. Complaining while looking at the ground as I was walking.


    ¡®What is an elf doing here anyways?! Also, what is wrong with his temper?! I heard elves do not even leave the forest they leave in because of the fear of becoming a slave. Yet this one signed up to be a teacher?! Just why?! Also what¡¯s so bad about the [Neutral] attribute to even make him behave that way when talking about it... ¡® As I was muttering I lifted my gaze only to notice I was in some slums, I could hear the plaza not too far away but I was lost¡­


    ¡°Oh, what do we have here?¡± I heard a cold voice from behind. Turning around I saw a person completely dressed in black. For some reason, I started shaking and could not think straight.


    ¡°U-Umm.¡±


    ¡°Oh, a magic academy student? This must mean you must be a [Mage] eh? Capture her!¡±


    Capture me?! I am not even a mage, I don¡¯t want to be captured¡­


    I started running away from the man not wanting to get captured, however, as I was turning the corner I felt something struck my legs and I tripped on the ground. I looked at my legs and could see something like a net wrapped around them. I started removing the net as fast as I could but as I was looking at my leg I saw a pair of feet, then I saw another pair. I kept seeing more and more, I was surrounded by scary looking men. I could not control my shaking.


    What will happen to me, I-I am a shameful person.


    I felt something cover me and suddenly a dull pain assaulted my head. I could not focus my thoughts anymore. ''I am so-¡­''


    ...


    * * *


    It was a busy day, people coming in and out of the room. Inside, the room floored with red carpet and stone walls covered with luxurious and fancy paintings, lit by a single floor to ceiling window, the man that was sitting behind his large desk. The noble man was grinding his teeth, the butler standing in front of the desk was slightly trembling.


    ¡°How did this happen!¡±


    I said while slamming my clenched fists on the desk. ¡®Ahh, this is a mistake. No, it was my mistake. If I just did not let her go out without guards, nothing would have happened!¡¯ I started grabbing my head in frustration.


    ¡°My Lord?!¡± Gerard called out in panic. I managed to compose myself after a few seconds. I had to know what happened. Again...


    ¡°Gerard, tell me what happened again.¡±


    I said with a serious tone that sounded uninterested, however, I am mentally a turmoil, I need to know what happened again.


    ¡°Y-yes my lord¡± Gerard was a bit shaken by my change of attitude, he began speaking in a professional yet regretful voice.


    ¡°Milady went to the academy and....¡±


    ¡°And?¡± I urged Gerard for an answer.


    ¡°She did not come back.¡± Gerard hesitantly said, I frowned after hearing this yet again, no matter how I think about it. I feel angry, towards myself. I am a failure as a father. My daughter... I hope you forgive me.


    It was another day in the luxurious room, yet it was completely silent as if the turmoil that happened previously never happened. The noble man was writing documents on the desk extremely focused on his work, he would pause, and keep writing. The more he kept writing the more he slowed down until he stopped¡­ The paper was wet, rather the tears of regret of the man were striking the paper''s surface. The man looked at the paper blankly. He could hear a slightly fast yet periodic clacking sound coming from the hallway.


    "L-... F-..."


    The heavy door slammed against the wall making a deafening sound, at the entrance Gerard the butler stood, sweating and panting. The lord slowly lifted his heavy head and gazed towards the butler. Gerard could hardly stand.


    Gerard exclaimed as soon as he recovered his breath.


    "Lord Firil!"


    "... What?" After a brief pause, I answered. Gerard, I do not have time for this¡­ Not now.


    "We found what happened to Milady!" After hearing those words, I perked up from my seat and had my eyes wide open, I sat down again realizing my mistake, a disgraceful behaviour from my part. I recovered my composure and asked.


    "What did you find?" Gerard was frozen after seeing my reaction but he quickly recovered, after a few seconds he spoke. However, his voice full of energy was gone.


    "...She was captured."


    "She was what?!" I froze. Gerard seeing my reaction got cold feet and started slightly trembling, he spoke again.


    "Captured¡­" His voice was regretful, I could feel hatred surging from my insides. Slowly standing up from my seat.


    ¡°Gerard¡­ Bring my daughter back, this is a command as your Master.¡±


    He frantically bowed and left the room in a rush. I want them. I want the people that captured her dead! I want my daughter back! Remembering her behaviour lately there was something wrong, yet I did not realize it¡­ What am I?! Stupid?!


    I am sorry¡­ Please forgive me¡­ I collapsed on my desk.

 (Chpt. 23) Fifi.

    Alice.


    Entering the cave it was quite dark, rather¡­ I couldn¡¯t see at all. Aizen did not seem to be able to see either, considering I just heard a dull sound next to me and a cute ¡®Ku.¡¯ sound. I assume she ran into a rock or something when we were walking. I don¡¯t have night-vision nor an item that produces light. I mean in-game all characters had this mysterious perk. When you went into a dark area you could ever so slightly see. And there were no items that had innate glow, I did not have a source of light. I am at loss.


    We were slowly walking further into the cave. It took a few minutes, but I began to hear some type of snorting. As we were getting closer to that sound.


    ¡°WHO DARES TO ENTER MY TERRITORY?!¡±


    I heard a thunderous scratchy voice that had enough force to make the rocks rumble. Suddenly the whole room was filled with a warm orange light. It was Aizen¡¯s flame. For whatever reason, it was coming out of her hand¡­ Wait¡­ she could always use the flame, yet she literally ran into something earlier? I mean I am pretty sure she even made a cute sound when she hit it.


    Looking back at the red dragon, I noticed he shrank at the sudden light however he quickly fixed his gaze on Aizen.


    ¡°Two little girls dare to invade this majestic dragon¡¯s territory?!¡± The dragon exclaimed.


    ¡°Majestic? You?! Don¡¯t make me laugh.¡± Aizen said in a cold voice with crossed arms. For some reason, the dragon shrank yet again, turning his head towards the wall and started mumbling something.


    Suddenly he turned back to us with piercing eyes.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know who are you. To speak the language of the dragons... But¡­ A HUMAN IS JUST A HUMAN!¡± The dragon seemed enraged. I think he felt intimidated by Aizen? Although language of the dragons? He sounds pretty normal to me aside from the whole. ''Human is just a human.'' I think I have heard that before, Hmm...


    ¡°And you are just a pitiful low-tier dragon. You don¡¯t even have wings, aren¡¯t you basically a lizard at this point?¡± She completely destroyed the lizard.


    I mean looking again at the dragon it doesn''t have wings, how could I miss something so obvious? Although I can see two protruding black horns on his forehead.


    The dragon was having none of it and was looking at her with bloodshot eyes. When the dragon was leaning his body back to jump onto us Aizen raised her finger as always, and pointed it at him. However, she did not cast a spell. I glanced at the dragon again waiting for his pounce however, he was uncontrollably shaking and was moving his hulking body back until he hit the wall behind him.


    ¡°W-who a-are you?¡± The trembling dragon talked in a quite submissive and soft voice. Aizen did not answer and just kept her finger pointed at him. The dragon started shaking more and more, after a few seconds she talked in an amused voice.


    "Oh, looks like you are not a Lizard after-all, seeing you can actually see what was going to happen if you decided to attack us." Wait I don''t get this at all?!


    "T-That mana of yours¡­ H-How¡­" The docile dragon answered my question in a trembling voice.


    ''So something like mana perception?'' I muttered trying to reach an answer.


    "Well Lizard, we have come here to kill you¡­" She paused. The dragon''s eyes went blank listening to her cold voice. "But¡­ I have an offer." Aizen added, I could''ve sworn the dragon breathed a sigh of relief however dragons cannot do that. I think?


    "W-What''s your offer?" The dragon timidly asked.


    "Become her summon."


    "Eh?" I let out a stupid sound. Aizen was pointing her finger at me.


    What do you mean my summon? I mean I certainly would not mind having a summon again but¡­


    "Is this some kind of joke?! I will serve you, but... her?! What makes her so special?!" The dragon angrily retorted.


    "Well, listen here Lizard. I am following her, I was her servant at one point so it is now your turn." She said in a firm voice however there is something that bothers me. Servant? Weren''t we friends? I need to ask Aizen later.


    The dragon hearing Aizen leaned his face down and looked at me. The dragon sighed? And spoke in a firm tone.


    "I shall serve you. Girl with weird eye colors. However, you have the summoner class right?"


    I nodded.


    "Well let''s begin the contract." Aizen chimed in and gave me a piece of paper. It was a standard written contract. Normally contracts would be verbal, but you could always use a piece of paper. However, there was something quite specific. Normally when a summon is dismissed they go where they used to be. However this one had a location specified. I decided to ask Aizen about it.


    "Where does the location lead to?"


    "My old cave." Aizen said with puffed up chest and then turned to the dragon.


    "You lizard will live in that cave now. Kill humans that enter, simple enough right? If you are ever in danger I even included that you can forcefully summon yourself once. Be thankful. However, in doing so we will act accordingly, therefore don''t summon yourself on a whim or you might die." Aizen informed the dragon ending her speech with a cold voice. The dragon visibly gulped.


    "Do you accept these terms? If so please touch my hand." I monotonously said while extending my hand towards him. ''This is how contracts were done right?'' As I inwardly questioned myself I felt a raspy and dry sensation in my hand. I was touching the dragon''s head.


    "I accept the terms." I heard the dragon''s somewhat quiet voice. Then I felt a warm sensation on my hand, soon enough a layer of bright white-light covered the dragon and then dissipated into the air. The contract was complete however, I needed a name to call him for summon before I dismiss him sending him to Aizen''s mountain or whatever.


    "Your name will be Fifi." I gave the dragon a glorious name that he should be proud of.


    "Wa-"


    "You are now dismissed." I interrupted the dragon as he was about to protest. A magic circle formed below the dragon and started to swallow him. It did not look enjoyable at all, for some reason he did not speak. But I did see how he made a futile struggle, to try to not be swallowed by the circle. Inevitably, he ended up disappearing with the magic circle.


    "Well, I guess that does it" I casually said. But I remembered something.


    "By the way. Aizen what did you mean by servant."


    I decided to ask Aizen about earlier, however, she took a step back and had a confused face as if saying ''Isn''t it obvious?'' however, I did not get it at all so I kept looking at her.


    "Kuro, I mean Yami. A contract is a master and servant thing." She said in a somewhat cold tone.


    "Well yeah, but I never really considered you a servant. I always saw you as a companion. And sometimes even as a friend." I answered the obvious. I noticed Aizen was frozen hearing this.


    ¡°You really are stupid sometimes...¡± Her tone was soft and I noticed she was wiping her eyes with her sleeve. Seeing her reaction made me realize something. I placed my hands on her shoulders while trying not to get burnt by the fire on her hand.


    ¡°Aizen, I do not think of anyone as my servant. Not even Fenri, just keep that in mind.¡±


    ¡°Nn.¡± Aizen nodded with warm eyes. Suddenly the light dissipated and I could no longer feel the heat to my side. I felt something else. It was warm, she was¡­ Hugging me. I followed and lovingly whispered to her ear.


    ¡°Silly dragon.¡±


    However, instead of saying something, she hugged me tighter. I began to feel her ever so slight shaking. ¡®She said she was just a girl, not a dragon¡­ While I cannot deny or confirm that¡­ I don¡¯t know if you are fine like this or want to return but... I will try to help. I don''t know what happened in the last thirty years, but now I am here.¡¯ With those thoughts, I started patting her back. This continued for a while until she stopped trembling and separated herself from me while doing so our faces brushed and I felt something wet on my cheek. However, she did not say anything. I heard some cloth rubbing and then the warm-orange light was back.


    ¡°Are we going now?¡± She said trying to sound cold but her eyes were warm and she had a faint-smile plastered on her face and her cheeks were slightly pink.


    ¡°Nn.¡± I nodded and started walking next to her.


    After a few minutes. I remembered something.


    ¡°What experiment did you want to try?¡± I asked her out of curiosity.


    ¡°Well remember that Lizard? They are actually incapable of human language however, I wanted to try to see if the [Translation] skill worked with intelligent beings. Also, I wanted to see if it recognized me. It didn¡¯t so I guess it was a failure in that aspect?¡± She said nonchalantly. It did make sense, although I never really bothered with such things. Horned-dragons were in the game but they only roared so yeah¡­


    Aizen extinguished her flame. We could see the exit of the cave now, I could see the starry night sky. And before I could appreciate the beautiful glittering night, I began to hear some voices although I could not quite make out what they were saying. As we were getting closer I heard Dan and Ari arguing.


    ¡°They will come back!¡±


    ¡°Listen Ari. I need to report that they died.¡±


    ¡°No! They will come back!¡±


    Ari kept persuading with unwavering will.


    We could see them now. Dan seemed to be ready to go with his backpack but Ari was tugging on him. Fenri was soundlessly sleeping next to them.


    ¡°Umm. We are here.¡± I timidly said while raising my hand. They stopped arguing and turned hurriedly turned their heads our way. Before I got time to react Ari was already rubbing her head against my chest.


    ¡°Yami, Dan is mean! She said you won¡¯t be coming back.¡± Her voice was childish.


    ¡°I am a man!¡± Dan suddenly exclaimed, he was slowly walking towards us.


    Aizen tilted her head hearing what Dan exclaimed. Eventually, he made his way in front of us.


    ¡°First I want to apologize for claiming you are dead. Second. What happened to the dragon?¡±


    Dan talked in an emotionless tone for some reason I guess that is his professional voice or something.


    ¡°Ah, about the dragon. Well, he is no longer here however, he is not quite dead.¡± I said while scratching the back of my head. I sort of smiled while looking at him.


    ¡°Well, if he is still alive then you basically failed your request.¡± Dan said in a cold voice.


    ¡°The dragon became a summoned beast.¡± Aizen said while standing next to me.


    ¡°Is it yours?¡± Dan asked Aizen however, she just shook her head and pointed at me. Dan kept switching glances between me and Fenri. Eventually nodding.


    ¡°I don¡¯t get it at all.¡± Dan casually declared.


    ¡°Ah I guess, It is easier to explain it.¡± I nonchalantly said and separated Ari from me seeing she was still glued onto me. I turned towards the cave and began my chant. it wasn¡¯t really a chant though.


    ¡°Come forth Fifi.¡± A red magic circle formed on the ground and the horned-dragon stood there.


    ¡°WHO ARE YOU CALLING FIFI! WHAT IS WITH THAT NAME?!¡± Fifi was stomping the ground while shouting at me. However, I just shrugged it off and looked at Dan. His mouth was wide-open however he closed it after a few seconds and turned around while putting his hand on his chin I could hear some murmurs from him. He sighed and loosened his shoulders then turned to us.


    ¡°I can see why Ari wasn¡¯t worried at all now. The quest will be marked as complete. I will see what I can do regarding the no-trace disappearance.¡± Dan tiredly said.


    ¡°I AM TALKING HERE!¡± Fifi was still complaining behind me.


    ¡°You can go now. Dismissed.¡±


    ¡°WA-.¡± Fifi was swallowed by the magic circle that ends conversations. I saw his futile resistance but I shrugged seeing it did not concern me.


    I walked to Ari she seemed to be calm unlike earlier. I started hugging her like I should¡¯ve, and whispered to her.


    ¡°I am sorry for making you worried.¡±


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t worried at all¡­¡±


    She said in a dead yet distant tone, like if she was thinking about something else. After giving her a few head-pats which seemed to brighten her face a bit. I decided to not ask her about what was going on.


    ¡°Well¡­ We cannot go back now.¡± Dan said while looking at the sky and interrupting our warmness.


    ¡°So I think we should camp.¡± Dan suggested.


    ¡°¡±Nn.¡±¡± Ari and I nodded. However.


    ¡°We should camp inside the cave!¡± Aizen excitedly said. We all awkwardly nodded from her weird behaviour, but ending up going into the cave. However, Dan stopped us and pulled out a torch and then placed it on the ground. He pulled out two hand-sized gray rocks that had a slight brown tint. He started smashing them together next to the torch to create sparks.


    After lighting up the torch, he put away the rocks back into his backpack and lifted our new light source. He suddenly asked.


    ¡°Now that I think about it, how did you girls see inside here?¡±


    ¡°Like this.¡± Aizen nonchalantly answered after making some of her trademark fire.


    ¡°Oh, a mage?! You must have graduated from the magic academy in the capital?¡±


    Dan sounded somewhat excited however, Aizen just tilted her head in confusion. I noticed Ari was somewhat stiff after hearing the word capital.


    ¡°Magic academy?¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­ You are one of those self-taught mages?! I can give you a recommendation letter to the academy.¡± Dan suddenly and excitedly offered Aizen.


    ¡°Umm, we are not planning to go to the capital. What can we find there anyways?¡± I joined the conversation and asked Dan. He tilted his head, however, his eyes sparkled after a second and started talking.


    ¡°Well, seeing you girls are adventurers I am sure you would be interested in better gear. In the capital, you can find the best materials and craftsmen.¡± Hearing this there is no doubt about it.


    ¡°Aizen, we are going to the capital.¡± I said while holding her shoulders, she made a wry smile and nodded.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Do we really have to go.¡± A voice joined in, It was Ari, however, her voice was quiet.


    ¡°Why shouldn¡¯t we go?¡± I firmly asked Ari.


    ¡°Well¡­ Umm¡­ T-that is where I became a slave.¡± She quietly said while fidgeting with visible nervousness.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Ari. Aizen and I said we would protect you.¡± I reassured her and her face brightened, however, it turned somewhat sour aftewards.


    ¡°If you say so... Then I guess there is no problem.¡± She quietly said.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s settled then. I will make a recommendation letter when I can.¡± Dan enthusiastically said while walking into the cave. We followed soon after.


    We continued walking until we arrived at the spacious cavity in which the dragon resided in. Dan dropped his bag on the ground and started taking what seemed like sleeping bags. He gave Ari and me one. He also tried to give one to Aizen however, she heartlessly declined... Instead, she went to a corner of the room and curled into a ball like always. However, I could see her face. And she was smiling for some reason. ¡®Could it be that she is happy to sleep in a cave once again?¡¯ I muttered in speculation. Fenri quietly followed us into the cave and decided to sleep next to Aizen.


    Dan slept on his own sleeping bag and turned off the torch once we were all ready to sleep. Ari was next to me. I knew she was awake because I could hear fabric rubbing from her fidgeting. I worriedly whispered to her.


    ¡°Ari, if you don¡¯t want to go to the capital just say so.¡±


    She rolled over to face me. However, I could not see her face I could only feel her warm breath.


    ¡°It¡¯s not like that¡­ I am fine with going to the capital but... ¡° She suddenly stopped.


    ¡°But?¡±


    ¡°Yami are you really fine with me coming along? Why do the two of you take me along? At times I just feel like I am just a nuisance. Besides I-I-¡±


    I interrupted her whispering.


    ¡°Ari, I am fine with you. I might look fine, however, Aizen and I have our own secrets and problems. You helped me stay on my path or rather... You helped me find a new path at the end of the path I was in... If I hadn¡¯t met you I probably would just exist. You gave me a reason to do something else, so please accept it.¡±


    I answered truthfully. If I hadn¡¯t met Ari, especially after ¡®resurrecting¡¯ or whatever. I honestly don¡¯t know what I would¡¯ve been doing. The ¡®shock¡¯ of becoming a girl was there but what after I organized my thoughts. I probably would¡¯ve settled on a town or something and sold items to make a living and just live. Although I feel like Ari for thinking about this... But, who is she? I am sure she is not normal even as a ten-year-old. I might have blindly trusted her information but she is certainly smart. I do not think what she said is a lie at all.


    I heard some fabric brushing and then¡­ I felt something behind me. it was Ari, she slowly slid into my sleeping bag and began tightly hugging me. I could feel my back become somewhat warm.


    "If that''s how it is, then... I feel somewhat similar." She whispered that to me. However, I did not understand what she meant.


    ¡®Ah well. Looks like it¡¯s resolved now.'' I dismissed the whole situation in my thoughts. ''However, I wonder what we will find in the capital. I want to see if there is a new metal I don¡¯t know about. I want to see something exciting there!¡¯ As I joyously thought. I began to feel Ari¡¯s strength lessen. I think she fell asleep. Ahh, I am looking forward to what is about to come.


    Although I think it is my time as well. I turned towards Ari and started hugging her, mostly because Ari was pressing my tail through my cloak against my back. Which made me quite uncomfortable. I closed my eyes although it felt weird¡­ Mostly because. Having open or closed eyes all I could see darkness. A few minutes went by and after my brain was over the weird feeling, my eyelids started to feel heavy. I carefully yawned trying to not wake Ari up. I ended up falling asleep shortly after.

 (Author) New cover and help.

    Alice.


    it has been a long time since I made one of these.


    As the title says, I am working on a new cover. It''s going to be more moe! I will post a super rough potato sketch on this post.


    Anyways, what do I mean by help? I am just looking for feedback regarding the story, to be honest. What you like, what you dislike. Do characters feel fake? Etc. I am always trying to improve so some more feedback from multiple people is nice. I have gotten feedback from a few people but I think the more the better. So there is that. This author of yours has been working really hard to improve writing and the story in general. Hopefully, it has been noticeable. If it hasn''t well... I hope it eventually is.


    Here is the cover sketch. I would certainly like to know everyone''s thoughts.

 (Chpt. 24) Back to Mirl.

    I found myself in an endless abyss, no floor, no light. There was nothing¡­ I was alone¡­ Where am I? Where is this place?


    ¡°Y-...i.¡±


    I heard a somewhat male voice, but it sounded more like a girl than anything. I turned around and I saw no one. I decided to blink, but it remained the same.


    ¡°Yami.¡±


    Someone was calling for me? I decided to open up my eyes again with a somewhat hazy vision. I could now see a cute girl with short black hair and eyes that matched that smooth hair of hers. She was dimly illuminated by a torch. Wait¡­ I think I recognized that face. That was not a girl¡­ I think? Honestly, I would not mind if it was a girl or a guy, cuteness is justice!


    ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    ¡°Oh, nothing. Haha. Thank you for waking me up.¡±


    I made a dry laugh as I thanked Dan due to my previous thoughts. I started to get out of my sleeping bag and then, I felt something warm behind me. I looked behind, and Dan followed my action, peering behind me. It was Ari.


    ¡°Oh, no wonder I could not find her.¡± Dan said in a somewhat relieved voice.


    ¡°Ah, sorry about that. I will wake her up.¡±


    After apologizing to Dan, I got off from my sleeping bag and started to move Ari back and forth. Whispering to her ear.


    ¡°Ari wake up.¡±


    After doing so a few times. She started mumbling something I could not quite understand, and suddenly her eyes shot open.


    ¡°Yami?!¡±


    ¡°... Nn.¡±


    She suddenly exclaimed in surprise, her breathing was ragged, and her eyes were trembling. ¡®Did she have a nightmare?¡¯ I questioned under my breath. I decided to kneel down next to Ari.


    ¡°Everything will be fine, now that I am here.¡± I tried to reassure her while whispering into her ear. She seemed to have a blank expression. I gently hugged her. Her body was somewhat cold and trembling, she gradually stopped shaking and her body regained some warmth. She hugged me back and whispered to me while still pressing her face against my body.


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    I let Ari go and got up. I could see Dan looking at us with a somewhat uneasy expression.


    ¡°Umm. Sorry to interrupt you girls, but how do you wake up that girl?¡±


    Dan asked while pointing at Aizen.


    ¡°Ah¡­ Don¡¯t worry I will wake her up.¡± I said while scratching the back of my head.


    Looking at Aizen and her reaction to the cave yesterday. She must want the full-course of being a dragon. ''Nn.'' I internally nodded. ''Well, I certainly cannot wake her up trying to kill her.'' Thinking like that I scanned the ground with my heterochromatic eye powers¡­ Not really¡­ I looked for a rock that was about the size of my fist. As I was scanning, I saw a grayish-white rock with a lot of black spots. It was somewhat easy to spot, due to it being a white object contrast against the mostly gray, almost black ground that absorbed the torch¡¯s light. I headed towards the rock and picked it up. It was quite heavy, I think it was something like granite? Well, I am no mineral expert. I could appraise it, but sadly it will have a less artistic end.


    Landing my gaze on Aizen. Dan was looking at me with a tilted head, so was Ari. I started to casually walk until I was close to Aizen, now that I am sure I won¡¯t miss. I clumsily throw the rock at Aizen, hitting her head. It made an audible dull sound. Turning around, Ari did not seem to mind it. Dan was looking at me with fear as if I was a serial killer.


    ¡°Ughh¡­¡± Aizen groaned while getting up. She was massaging the back of her head. She looked for what was just thrown at her. It was the dragon slaying rock. I could see a vein pop on her head but I did not mind.


    ¡°Why? Why would you throw a rock at me?!¡±


    ¡°I thought you were a dragon. Sorry.¡±


    Aizen stiffened as I apologized. Looking around, Dan was looking at Aizen with wide-open eyes. I mean, I am sure if that rock actually hit someone in their sleep they would probably be dead. Aizen looked unscathed. As expected from the little girl that looks down on people. ¡®Nn.¡¯ I internally nodded.


    ¡°Yami?¡± Dan brought me back from my thoughts.


    ¡°Ah, sorry, I was thinking about something.¡± I replied with a wry smile.


    ¡°Well, now that you are done with that. I guess we should go back.¡±


    We all nodded and helped Dan pack the sleeping bags. Fenri woke up shortly after.


    Apparently scouts like Dan or guides... What is he? He said he was both so, I don¡¯t know. But they are required to take camping gear to accommodate the adventurers in case the mission takes longer than expected. Apparently, this one went kind of fast. I heard that something like this request would take a [Silver] adventurer party about 3 to 4 days to kill the dragon if it goes well. Apparently, we did it faster than a [Gold] party would take. Huh¡­


    After helping Dan with packing. I grabbed Ari¡¯s hand and made sure Fenri was next to me. We started walking towards the exit, just following a straight rocky route. After a bit of walking, Dan extinguished his torch, before I could say anything. I noticed the rocks were somewhat orange; They were reflecting the sunlight from the exit. It seemed to be early morning seeing the sky was somewhat orange. We continued walking.


    ¡°Well, we are done now.¡± Dan said in relief as we exited the cave.


    ¡°I guess we should go back to town.¡± I casually suggested.


    ¡°Wait a moment Yami, how will you enter if you know¡­ If you are a beastkin.¡±


    Dan sounded somewhat hesitant to say it as he was looking at my ears. But I did not mind. I just covered my ears with the cloak like I did with Ari. Dan just tilted his head and looked at me with his hand on his chin. Probably thinking about something, but I paid it no mind and took the [Disguise] ring out. Placing it on my hand I shivered as always. Dan seemed even more confused by my shivering but just shrugged and turned around.


    We continued leisurely walking, for some reason, Dan was quite talkative although his voice was always his ¡®professional¡¯ tone most of the time. Most of his talk was just questions to us though. Like ¡®Why are we only [Copper]¡¯ or things like that. Apparently [Gold] ranked adventurers are around level 30. [Obsidian] adventurers or above have two classes or even three. Huh. Aren¡¯t we quite strong? Although is it possible for a native to have more than three classes? I certainly don''t know¡­


    After a few minutes of walking, we could see the mossy city walls again. The subjugation was surprisingly close to the town, seeing that it wasn¡¯t even mid-day yet. I would say it was still early morning, but I can¡¯t really tell the time¡­


    Walking down the dirt road, some of the guards could see us and waved at us. We arrived at the front of the gate, the guard from yesterday let everyone pass except for me. They even let Fenri go in. They all stood behind the gate, Dan was worriedly looking at me.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you the beastkin girl from yesterday?¡± The armored guard asked me in suspicion.


    ¡°I am not really a beastkin.¡± I nonchalantly answered.


    ¡°Then please take your hood off.¡± He said with a somewhat evil-grin.


    As I slowly and dramatically raised my hands to take my hood, I could see the guard attentively looking at me. So was Dan. I removed the hood and both of them froze. The guard started rubbing the top of my head in disbelief. It was a weird feeling.


    ¡°Umm, excuse me?¡± I awkwardly brought the guard back to reality.


    After a brief pause. The guard blinked a few times.


    ¡°I am so sorry Miss! I will let you pass immediately¡±


    He moved aside and bowed in a panic. Allowing me to pass, when I arrived next to everyone. Dan was still frozen. After a few seconds, Dan started to repeatedly look at the top of my head.


    ¡°Weren¡¯t you a beastkin?¡± Dan asked in confusion.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you mean.¡± I dismissed Dan¡¯s claim.


    Dan had his mouth hung open to ask more things, but ultimately closed it and did not say anything. We continued walking towards the adventurer¡¯s guild. Some people recognized my unusual appearance and just had their eyes wide open looking at the top of my head. There was nothing. Apparently, the fact that there was a beastkin in town got around fairly quickly.


    Leisurely walking with Dan attracted some weird glances. Some people smiled some people tilted their heads in confusion, some people looked at Fenri. Eventually, we were in the main plaza and continued walking towards the guild, once we were fairly close to the guild. We could hear something going on in the inside. It was quite noisy.


    At the entrance, I began hearing the lumberjack.


    ¡°I am telling you! The girls died, I did my best to protect them but... ¡°


    His acting skills were poor.


    ¡°Well, how about you wait for our scout before we do anything.¡± A firm female voice replied.


    Entering the guild everyone fixed their gazes on us.


    ¡°Looks like they are back and the scout is with them too.¡±


    The receptionist that was standing in front of the counter said while looking at Dan. The lumberjack looking guy had his eyes wide-open as if he had just seen a ghost. However, after pausing for a second and holding his hand on his chin. He persuaded as soon as he recovered.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t this mean they failed the request?¡±


    ¡°I have confirmed that the dragon has been taken care of.¡±


    Dan nonchalantly said before the receptionist could reply. Hearing this the receptionist froze and the guild grew noisy. The lumberjack man was frozen however, after a few seconds I could see him tightening his fist and slightly shaking.


    ¡°THAT IS BLASPHEMY! YOU EXPECT ME TO BELIEVE THAT A GROUP OF TWO GIRLS TOOK DOWN A HORNED-DRAGON?!¡±


    He was shouting and looking at us with resentment.


    ¡°Well it is certainly taken care of.¡± Dan casually answered the man again. The receptionist finally recovered and started looking at us then at Dan. He noticed her gaze and nodded. The receptionist seeing his agreement went back to the counter.


    "We have confirmed that the two girls have successfully subjugated the horned-dragon! Thus completing the request!" The receptionist joyously announced.


    The guild was silent, but after a few seconds, they started cheering. I could hear some raspy and normal voices telling us things.


    "It is nice to see a group of promising new adventurers."


    "I like my women strong!"


    Multiple people kept barking nonsense. However, the lumberjack while he was silent he was shaking and audibly gritting his teeth. He slowly but tightly gripped the axe on his back.


    "THAT''S A LIE!"


    He exclaimed in disbelief as he was swinging his axe at us. I heard multiple gasps however, Aizen just turned him into a statue with her useful time spell. His eyes were trembling as if experiencing the fear of his life. Everyone was looking at him but no one said anything.


    Approaching the counter with the receptionist that was still looking at the man.


    "Um, could we get our reward?"


    "A-Ah, ah? Ah! Yes, the reward."


    She was visibly and verbally confused but crouched under the counter and I could hear multiple faint metallic sounds. She stood up again and gave me a small bag.


    Opening the bag I could see one silver colored coin that had a slightly blue metallic shine. It looked more like a gem than a coin. I assume that it was the coin from the quest. Quite weird considering [Eternal Mithril] was black. Well, whatever. The bag also contained five blue coins, they seemed to be made of a mineral instead of metal.


    I confirmed to the receptionist by nodding. However, I had business with Dan.


    "Looks like the right amount. Dan remember what you told us?"


    "Ah... Yes. I will be back in a minute."


    Dan took a while to answer because he was looking at the lumberjack. He went upstairs and entered a room. The receptionist tilted her head looking at his behaviour, but she did not ask us anything and instead just started doing paperwork on the counter. Pausing mid-way she seemed to remember something.


    ¡°May I have your guild cards to mark it as complete?¡±


    Aizen and I gave her our guild cards, she quietly received them. However, after inspecting them her eyes went wide-open and started repeatedly looking at the cards. I could hear her muttering things like. ¡®Why would they take such a quest with that rank.¡¯ or ¡®How did they even take care of the dragon?¡¯ I just shrugged it off. Eventually, she stopped and regained her calm then used some magic again on the cards. They remained unchanging and she gave us the card back to us.


    I heard a door click and heard some footsteps from the balcony above us. Then the clacking on the stairs, I could ever so slightly see the top of Dan¡¯s head going down the stairs from the railing. Eventually arriving and stopping in-front of us.


    ¡°Just like I said, here is the recommendation letter.¡± She handed Aizen an envelope with a red-waxing seal on it. The seal had the same crest as the coins, Aizen curiously inspected the envelope before putting it in her pocket. I am sure she just tossed it into her inventory or [Spatial box] while pretending to stuff it into her pocket. Well isn¡¯t her [Spatial box] kind of like a pseudo inventory?


    Dan had a cramped face seeing his envelope being carelessly put into a pocket, but did not say anything. There was only silence. I guess we are done here?


    ¡°Well, we are going.¡± I broke the silence.


    ¡°Ah, yes. Thank you for the adventure, girls.¡± Dan said in a somewhat happy voice.


    ¡°See you later Dan, although I still think you are a girl.¡± The tactless dragon hit Dan.


    ¡°Thank you as well Dan.¡± I gave my thanks to him.


    ¡°T-Thank you.¡± Ari quietly thanked him.


    ¡°Woof.¡±


    After giving our farewells to our adorable companion Dan, we left the guild. Everyone was still looking at the lumberjack for some reason. After a minute or so of walking towards the north gate to get to our inn. Aizen relaxed her tense shoulders, I assume she dismissed the spell.


    Silently walking without saying anything we arrived at the inn and opened the ringing door. The lady lifted her gaze from the counter to us and her eyes sort of sparkled. Fixing her gaze on my forehead or top of my head she rubbed her eyes and looked again. However, she tilted her head in confusion. Arriving at the counter we talked to the lady.


    ¡°Um, the same as always?¡± I awkwardly said with a wry smile.


    ¡°Ah, yes. I see you are back, but slightly different.¡±


    She said while handing me the key in return I gave her my last five silver coins.


    ¡°Haha. I guess I do look slightly different don¡¯t I?¡±


    I awkwardly said while scratching the back of my head.


    ¡°Well, I think this saves you a lot of trouble.¡± She firmly said. I could tell she meant those words seeing her fixed gaze on me. It made me feel a bit awkward.


    "Yeah... Thank you."


    Thanking the lovely lady, we went upstairs to our room with Fenri tagging along.


    Alice.


    I could not think of a poll. Sorry for now.


    Waa. It is nice to see getting so many views again. Albeit it was only because of the "double" post. Still nice. Although I must say, considering the amount of chapters I am writing a day. (1 a day for chapter buffer.) I can''t help but feel like the quality may or may not be deteriorating. Not like it was good in the first place.


    Also 4.2 stars? Some of you are merciless with the 1 and 3-star ratings. I hope you people give the series some time to actually screw up. Cough, the first actual plot arc Cough. That will be a disaster. Thanks for reading. o/


    This is for those that are interested in the cover progress (It looks kind of odd because it''s only displaying lineart.). I will do a poll when I am done with the sketch.

 (Chpt. 25) Escort.

    Alice.


    Opening the door we entered our usual room. I just decided to sit on one of the chairs, Ari and Aizen followed by sitting in front of me. Aizen was the first person to speak. Her tone was indifferent.


    ¡°Are we really going to the capital?¡±


    ¡°Well, where else could we go?¡±


    I asked for suggestions, Aizen just started scratching her cheek and started talking with a troubled face.


    ¡°That is¡­¡±


    ¡°Exactly.¡±


    I dismissed Aizen.


    Wait¡­ Come to think of it, now that we are alone, I can do information gathering with my favorite information dealer. I would like to know what is the problem around here with beastkin in general and why people are so quick to judge. I don¡¯t particularly consider myself a beastkin despite the ears and tail, but it would be nice to know.


    ¡°Ari, why do people hate beastkin?¡±


    ¡°You know¡­ Sometimes your questions seriously make me question if you are a real person¡­¡±


    Ari said in a somewhat quiet tone¡­ Judging by her reaction, I am guessing basically everything I have asked her is common knowledge. Well, I can¡¯t help it! Going by the way people reacted to the fact, that I am level 40 on a class makes me question. ''Does the way to raise levels here differ from just killing monsters? If I am apparently ¡®Hero¡¯ levels of strength, wouldn¡¯t it take around nine or so years to reach level 120? I mean if you go the monster killing route¡­ Shouldn¡¯t high-level be something more common? I get that you cannot revive but like, wouldn¡¯t just bringing a low level into a high-level party get them free levels?'' So many questions¡­


    After a brief period of thinking and silence, Ari sighed and began speaking.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know the exact reasons. But there is the church, who basically says that a sinner¡­ And...uh¡­ U-Umm.¡±


    Ari started stuttering and paused after sinner¡­ Tell me what do you mean? Before I could say anything, she continued.


    ¡°Had a child with an animal¡­ And that was the first beastkin, so they are often seen as impure... ¡°


    Wait that is¡­ so wrong in so many ways¡­ I wonder what do they think of elves with that logic¡­ Ari continued speaking in a somewhat quiet voice due to the awkwardness from earlier.


    ¡°Also, there was a war with the beastkin continent and ever since that happened. Humans and beastkin hate each other, rather¡­ They have always hated each other but now it¡¯s worse.¡±


    Well, that is way more logical. I guess I will have to wear the ring in the capital? Ah, I am not looking forward to it at all! Although, I guess, that knowing why beastkin are hated is nice. I do remember the person in the guild shop or whatever that shack was. Called me catkin instead of beastkin. While that is accurate, it seems that people will call you beastkin if they don¡¯t particularly care, and catkin if they care? Too complicated! I even call myself beastkin¡­ Now that I think about it. Do other beastkin call themselves by their type or just general race?


    ¡°Yami?¡±


    ¡°Ah, it¡¯s nothing¡­¡±


    Ari pulled me out of my thoughts like always.


    Well, I assume walking to the capital would be annoying. I don¡¯t know how far away it is. I don¡¯t even have a map¡­ Do I even know how to use a map? I don¡¯t have a map icon in my field of view so having the real thing is probably a no. So, what could we do to get there? Ah, carriages! Those were a thing in the game.


    ¡°Ari, are carriages are a thing?¡±


    ¡°We have seen a few carriages already."


    She nonchalantly answered while tilting her head... Right, we did see some on our way here... I guess that answers my pointless and dumb question. Therefore.


    ¡°We are going to the capital through carriage.¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t those expensive?¡± Ari asked while tilting her head again.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know but this should be more than enough right?¡±


    I casually said as I showed Ari the mithril coin. She froze when she saw it and then slowly nodded. ¡®How much is a mithril coin anyway? Do they follow the same ranks as guild ranks? No that would be stupid.¡¯ I murmured dismissing my thoughts. I guess we should look for a carriage shop.


    ¡°Well, break time is over. Time to look for a carriage shop.¡±


    ¡°¡±...Nn.¡±¡±


    Aizen and Ari unenthusiastically nodded. ¡®What is not exciting about going to the capital to see crafting materials?! Like, aren¡¯t shiny rocks cool?! Or is it just me? I mean I am certainly in love with anything that has to do with crafting soo¡­ Come to think of it, is potion alchemy a thing?¡¯ I muttered as we were leaving the room.


    We were leisurely walking through the hallway, there wasn¡¯t a single person like always, so we continued walking down the stairs. People raised their heads to look at the clacking sound coming from the stairs. Only to land their gazes on me, they looked at me full of hatred but when they saw that I did not have cat-ears they directed their gaze at the ground in a panic. ¡®What is wrong with these people¡­ Don¡¯t they have anything better to do?¡¯ After complaining in my mutter, we arrived at the counter.


    ¡°Oh, what can I do for you girls?¡± The lovely receptionist said while looking at our group.


    ¡°Umm. Is there a carriage shop here or something?¡±


    She placed her hand on her chin hearing my question. After a few seconds of her looking at the ceiling, she directed her eyes at me.


    ¡°Well, carriage shops or rentals. There are no such things in such a small town like this one. However, seeing you girls are adventurers you could take an escort request to your destination if you happen to find one.¡±


    Escort request? That sounds¡­ Annoying¡­ But probably the best option.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ I see. Thank you.¡± I thanked the lady in a somewhat dejected tone. I mean seriously¡­ Escort request? I doubt the employer will take three random girls. And even if the employer does happen to take us, will we be the only employed adventurers? Probably not¡­ Carriages going from here to the capital are most likely to be merchant carriages or wagons.


    After standing still for a few seconds in front of the counter, I decided to turn around and walk towards the entrance. Aizen and Ari followed as well as Fenri. Fenri as always was attracting more glances than what I usually get from my weird hair color. People don¡¯t seem to notice my eyes much unless I am talking to them, and they don¡¯t really mention them much. So I guess it¡¯s not a big deal.


    We left the inn. Aizen seemed to be thinking about something considering she hasn¡¯t talked since we left the room. Ari just kept muttering things while holding her hair. I could somewhat make out her frustration hearing things like. ¡®How does Yami know about some things and then doesn¡¯t know about simple things that everyone in this world should know. I bet if you asked her how to level she would probably answer to kill monsters!¡¯ I mean she wasn¡¯t wrong... I would probably answer that because monsters are exp. Exp means levels. Simple enough right?


    We continued to leisurely walk, I received a few stares from people, and as soon as they noticed I wasn¡¯t the beastkin they just tilted their head in confusion. ¡®I get that my appearance is unusual but what is with this attention. It¡¯s not like white hair is rare right? Old people have it¡­ I am old¡­ Yeah¡­ Objectively speaking aren¡¯t I an old man? Rather¡­ Woman?¡¯ As I questioningly reassured myself in my mutter we kept walking. A lot of the glances that were filled with hatred the day before now turned into confusion.


    We arrived at the guild again, some people looked confused due to our return. I paid it no mind and began scanning the [Copper] and above boards.


    ¡®Escort to the mountains¡­ Escort to the village of Rin¡­¡¯ As I was muttering the things I was reading I noticed a request in the [Silver] ranked board. The quest paper had blue borders for some reason. But it was just what we were looking for.


    [Escort request: To the capital city of Tortul]


    Description: Merchant would like to hire multiple adventurers to make it to the capital.


    [Reward: One gold coin per adventurer group.]


    ¡®Well, the pay is certainly a lot lower than the Horned-dragon. However, it does say capital city. So I guess it¡¯s the right place?¡¯ Thinking that. I grabbed the quest paper and took it to a receptionist on the counter. She lifted her eyes to see who placed the request on the table.


    ¡°Oh, you girls are back? Wait¡­ Not a beastkin?¡±


    She tilted her head when looking at me. I just shrugged, after a few seconds, the receptionist seemed to have recovered. Seeing she grabbed the paper and started scanning it. The receptionist was the same receptionist that registered us for the Horned-dragon.


    ¡°Hmm, well I heard you girls completed the horned-dragon suicide request. I guess this is fine. Do you girls know what the blue borders mean?¡±


    We shook our heads. The receptionist sighed and began explaining.


    ¡°The blue edges mean that it involves other adventurers. These quests have colored borders as a warning, it means the adventurers won''t take responsibility for the death of your comrades or whatever happens.¡±


    ¡°U-umm, what if for whatever reason other adventurers try to kill us and we kill them in the process?¡± I tried to ask as innocently as possible. Ari seemed somewhat stiff from hearing me but I paid it no mind.


    ¡°Haa? What kind of question is that? Normally the guild would put a bounty on your head however, this request has blue borders. The guild does not intervene in these types of requests.¡±


    She paused for a second and whispered to me.


    ¡°Nothing would happen to either party. Since you are basically accepting that absolutely anything can happen by taking the request.¡°


    ¡®So basically if I kill someone I can get away with it? Isn¡¯t that kind of scummy? Well, whatever¡­¡¯ As I was muttering the receptionist extended her hand. I am guessing to receive our guild cards. Aizen handed her card and I gave her mine. She used some type of magic again.


    "You girls have been registered for this request. You will meet your employer in the north gate tomorrow morning.¡±


    We thanked the receptionist and left the guild.


    So we are going to the capital? Well, I think we have everything that is necessary to go to the capital? Meat, a barrel full of apples for whatever reason. I have my useless amount of items that only increase stats¡­


    Thinking about it, seeing how many item effects exist, I should probably make some gear that have some of those effects. All I had was the [Suppress Aura] rings and the [Disguise] ring. Although¡­ I do have something that happens to be better than [Disguise] but I don¡¯t think I will ever need to use it. Rethinking about the gear I have¡­ Most of it just gives some type of stat bonus¡­ I guess it¡¯s not that bad seeing how stats work.


    Come to think of it, do Aizen or Ari want to go somewhere? I guess I should ask them.


    ¡°Do any of you want to go somewhere?¡±


    They just shook their heads. ¡®I guess that solves it¡­ So I guess we should go to the inn?¡¯ I questionably whispered to myself. After thinking for a few seconds we started walking to the inn yet again. ¡®Aren¡¯t we just unnecessarily walking around at this point?¡¯ I tiredly muttered as we continued walking.


    At least all of the nasty glances are gone now. Also, it¡¯s pretty nice that the north gate is close to the inn. So not that much walking, looking at the sky it¡¯s already a somewhat less vibrant blue. I can certainly see the sun, but I think it¡¯s going to set in probably an hour or two. The inn entered my view as we continued walking. I saw plenty of couples as always.


    Entering the inn the lady noticed us and waved to us to come to her.


    ¡°I see that you girls are back, would you like to share some tea with me?¡±


    ¡°¡±¡°Nn.¡±¡±¡± We all nodded, her tone gave a motherly feel so I guess that is fine. At least that is what I think motherly feel is? The best I got was an ¡®I am sorry.¡¯ from both of them¡­ Haha.


    ¡°Are you okay? Your face turned dark for a second.¡± The lady called out to me.


    ¡°Ah, yea. Sorry about that. Where would you like us to go?¡±


    The lady thought for a second and gestured to come behind the counter. Once there, she guided us to a room and then left. It seemed like a private room for people, seeing it was fairly furnished with a well-polished dark wooden tea table and two wood couches with red cushioning. The wallpaper had pink flowers, It was a surprisingly luxurious room, I glanced above and noticed a golden chandelier with light crystals instead of candles. It had six of them, it was fairly minimalistic seeing it did not have like a thousand glass shards hanging off it.


    ¡°How long are you going to stare at the ceiling?¡± Aizen pulled me back from my thoughts.


    ¡°Ah, sorry I will be right there.¡±


    I moved to sit with Aizen and Ari. I ended up sitting between both of them. As soon as I sat down I heard the door click. The lady came in with a tea-set and started pouring tea for us on porcelain teacups. She placed the cups in front of us, then served for herself and sat on the couch in front.


    ¡°Well, you might be wondering why I brought you here.¡± She casually said.


    ¡°I guess now that you mention it. Yeah.¡± I dumbly replied.


    She chuckled a bit, I took the time to grab the tea-cup and drink a bit from it. It was dark tea, not particularly my taste seeing it was slightly bitter but Ari and Aizen seemed to enjoy it so I did not say anything.


    ¡°I just wanted to ask if you were a beastkin. I mean a catkin.¡± Her tone changed to a more affectionate one.


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± I awkwardly agreed.


    ¡°Would you like some yarn?¡±


    She asked suddenly pulling a yarn ball from behind her and slightly throwing it in the air and catching it with her hand. Her eyes ever so slightly sparkled when doing that. What¡¯s so special with catkins and yarn? I don¡¯t get it!


    ¡°No?¡±


    She chuckled a bit to my confused answer but after taking a sip from her tea. Her eyes narrowed.


    ¡°Jokes aside. How did you hide your ears and tail?¡± Her voice was quite unfriendly which made my shoulders stiff.


    ¡°Umm¡­¡± I don''t know whether, to tell the truth, or not. I think it is just better to pretend I don¡¯t know.


    Before I could say anything she seemed to notice her sudden change and relaxed herself.


    ¡°I am sorry about that, it¡¯s just¡­¡± Her voice was quite melancholic and paused midway through talking. She was somewhat tense, however. She started fondling with her hair on top of her head and¡­ A pair of something that looked like solid hair came out, however, it seemed to be chopped off. Only the closest part to her skull was there¡­ Those were her ears...  I audibly gulped realizing it.


    ¡°As you can see¡­ I am worried that you eventually need to go through this.¡±


    ¡°Ah, no¡­ It¡¯s fine.¡± I did not know what to answer.


    ¡°Just take my advice. Don¡¯t get involved with the church.¡± Wait... The church? I wanted to avoid the church anyways. But.


    ¡°Why?¡± I naively asked. She sighed and started talking in a somewhat sad tone.


    ¡°Well as you know, they see us as impure. And they do ¡®purification¡¯ rituals¡­ You can guess what happens.¡± She briefly explained it, I noticed Ari was somewhat stiff.


    I got all of it, wait... That means¡­


    I glanced at her hips I would¡¯ve glanced at her buttocks but well¡­ She was sitting. Noticing my glance the lady slowly nodded. And there was silence. After a few seconds of silence, I decided to ask.


    ¡°Wait¡­ If you only wanted me here why did you bring all of us?¡±


    ¡°Well, seeing they are your companions I think they should know if they didn¡¯t.¡± She nonchalantly answered my dumb question.


    We kept talking about various things. In the end, I did not get much information aside from one important thing. If I ever wanted to go out of this continent I would need cross through the holy city of whatever. The continent apparently is like a big peninsula having only one way to go out. Ships were a thing but apparently foul monsters circumvented most of the ocean¡­ The more I know about this world, the crazier it gets¡­


    We thanked the lady and left the private room. I never asked her name and she never asked ours. ¡®I guess it¡¯s fine?¡¯ I reassured myself as we were leaving. Fenri got up from behind the counter and followed us upstairs to our room.


    We did selfishly ask the lady if she could wake us up early in the morning. She agreed without a problem. Also, apparently the reason to why there is no one in the hallways is because the second floor is for normal inn use only. Which surprisingly doesn¡¯t get many clients, while the third floor is for... ¡®Adult business¡¯. That¡¯s what she said anyway. I guess she tried to keep Ari from knowing too much or something.


    Laying in bed. ¡®I guess we are going to the capital now?¡¯ I muttered as I relaxed myself. And the day ended as always. The dragon and wolf sleeping on the floor and Ari and me on the bed.


    Hope everyone is liking the story so far. Also about the cover, you people won''t be seeing it any time soon. Haven''t had that much time to work on it, but it''s looking pretty okay. Just a bit more to start the first arc.

 (Chpt. 26) Sisters. (1)

    Alice.


    I woke up to the slow, but rhythmic knocking sound that was coming from our door. I slowly and carefully rubbed my eyes to not wake Ari up from my movements. I gently got off from bed, once I was out of bed I headed towards the door and opened it. My vision was still hazy as I was still rubbing my eyes, but I could somewhat see the silhouette of the inn lady.


    ¡°Morning.¡±


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s you. I brought you girls breakfast.¡±


    The lovely lady moved aside, I noticed it was the usual wooden trolley. I took the handle and pushed it into our room.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± I said in a somewhat tired voice.


    ¡°No problem. Take care.¡±


    Her voice was nice and soothing. She patted my head for some reason and left.


    I pushed the trolley into the room, everyone seemed to be awake now. ¡®Did I really make that much noise?¡¯ I muttered as I was setting the table. The breakfast was the same as always. Meat and soft bread.  ''Honestly, I think I could keep eating the same thing forever¡­'' I thought while savoring the delicious food.


    ¡°Oh, yeah¡­ We have to go right?¡± Aizen suddenly remembered.


    ¡°Go where?¡± I wonder where should we go?


    ¡°To the capital.¡± Right¡­ We were supposed to go to the north gate¡­


    We finished breakfast in a hurry and did not have time to tidy up the room. We left in a rush and went downstairs. The lady glanced at us.


    ¡°I am sorry we couldn¡¯t organize the room today.¡± I apologized feeling somewhat embarrassed. However, she just shook her head and waved her hand at the same time, as if saying ¡®Don¡¯t mind it.¡¯ We left the inn and trotted towards the north-gate. Running would''ve been quite awkward for us seeing Ari was struggling to keep pace with Aizen and I. Passing a lot of wooden and stone houses, we could see the north gate. I saw three wagons with white cloth roofing and what seemed like a group of adventurers. The wagons had two horses individually. I also heard a somewhat tired voice as we were approaching.


    ¡°Are we all here?¡±


    ¡°We just arrived.¡± I said while raising my hand. Looking at the person that made the question, it looked like a merchant. At least that is what I assumed, seeing he seemed to be dressed in smooth red and white fabrics that looked expensive. He did not have armor unlike all the other people present here. The merchant was looking at us and then tilted his head.


    ¡°Wasn¡¯t this a [Silver] request? Why are you girls here?¡±


    ¡°We took the request.¡± I nonchalantly answered. He seemed even more confused by this, but he just sighed and turned around. He began walking towards the carriage and climbed up to the coachman seat. He stood up to see the adventurer crowd and started speaking, to my surprise he had an all-enveloping voice unlike before. It was quite loud and I am sure everyone could hear him.


    ¡°As you all know, I am the merchant that has asked for escorts. You will all serve that purpose, we will be taking an unconventional more direct route towards the capital. That is why I hired you all. This is a special request. Your life depends on yourself. I have taken the liberty to hire a [Gold] ranked adventurer. Welcome Clay of the Bloody Axe!¡±


    The merchant ended his announcement quite enthusiastically. ''What¡¯s with that name? It sounds like something I would call myself when I used to dress all in black¡­'' I dejectedly thought -- for some reason, the adventurers started chanting his name like if it was some kind of cult or something. Then they all glanced at the coachman seat in awe. I lifted my gaze to ir where everyone was looking. It was the lumberjack¡­ He had a bright smile however, his smile turned sour as soon as he saw our group. After waving his hand like a celebrity and the enthusiasm dying out. He stepped down and came towards us.


    ¡°You girls! What are you even doing here?! And what was that dirty trick you played on me on the guild!¡±


    He seemed somewhat agitated. Taking a glance at our group Ari seemed indifferent. Fenri was wagging his tail and Aizen had a smirk.


    ¡°We are going to the capital. Also what trick? I just saw you freeze and your eyes started trembling.¡± Aizen calmly answered while adding some naiveness into her sentence. The lumberjack¡¯s gaze turned sharp but he did not say anything despite his protruding veins that looked like they were about to pop.


    Some of the adventurers fixed their gazes on us after the interaction with the grandiose Bloody Axe. I did not quite care, so I paid it no mind. Everyone just kept idling around for quite some time. ¡®Wasn¡¯t the merchant on a rush or something?¡¯ As I was muttering I heard the merchant yet again.


    ¡°We are leaving now, just walk at the pace of the wagons and take down bad guys. We will camp when I see fit.¡± The merchant casually said with a strong enough tone for everyone to hear. I heard a bell ring a few times and the carriages started moving forward. Some of the adventurers were chatting with their groups but it was pretty uneventful.


    As we were leaving the gate, a guard seemed to recognize me and tilted his head. I got a few weird stares from the guards in general. They did not say anything, so I guess it was fine.


    We were walking at the very back of the entire group. Mostly, because I thought it was more comfortable. No one said a thing so it was decided.  After a few minutes of walking, some adventurers approached us. They were a group of three men. They all wore leather armor that looked pretty worn out with a lot of scratches. However¡­ Maybe it was just my instinct, but I felt like they beat up the leather armor themselves, instead of it being beaten up by monsters.


    ¡°Hey, girls, what brings you here? Adventuring is pretty dangerous y¡¯know.¡±


    ¡°We took the request to go to the capital so, yeah.¡± I casually answered.


    ¡°That is no good. Allow us to protect you and in exchange.¡± He licked his lips. At this point, I felt disgusted. I took a glance at Aizen and the next thing I knew is that the adventurers were on the ground groaning in pain. Ari looked at it and then nodded and turned back to where she was looking. ¡®I guess she got used to it?¡¯ I murmured to myself.


    We continued walking without talking much for an hour or so. The adventurers showed no signs of coming back. ¡®You know I think it¡¯s nice that the request technically allows such things.¡¯ I happily thought to free myself from guilt.


    * * *


    The adventurers did not come back.


    ''I am wondering¡­ Should I tell Yami and Aizen? They did tell me a lot of things about them¡­ Will they accept me? I wonder¡­ Every single time I think about it. My heart starts to shrink¡­ Will I be able to go with them? Both of them said they are fine with it but¡­ Are they really fine?'' I continued walking while frustratingly thinking about it.


    Everything seemed pretty calm. No one really approached us. Some adventurers just looked at us with narrow eyes as if paying the utmost attention in what we were doing. Despite everyone looking at us, I wanted to ask¡­


    ¡°Hey. Yami, is it true that you only killed monsters to level up?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ Aside from smithing, yes pretty much.¡± Yami nonchalantly answered making me sigh. Noticing my sigh from her abnormal answer, she started muttering in a somewhat annoyed tone. Biting her finger and looking at the ground.


    That¡¯s not even what I wanted to ask! I-I have to ask her the right question¡­


    ¡°Since we are going to the capital. Can I stay by your side?¡± I quietly asked filled with negative thoughts. It wasn¡¯t what I wanted to ask either¡­


    ¡°Well, that was kind of the plan.¡± Yami paused for a second and answered while scratching her cheek.


    ¡°Ari just don¡¯t worry about it. I said I would, so I will. You have my word.¡± Aizen said with a puffed up chest. For some reason her tone made me feel at ease. I felt like I didn¡¯t need to ask anymore. But I still had to.


    After a few minutes of not saying anything, I made my decision and stopped walking. Yami and Aizen noticed this and also stopped walking to look at me. I looked at Yami to reaffirm my decision one last time.


    ¡°Yami, Aizen... While I am sure both of you did not tell me everything about yourselves¡­ I have made my decision. Rather¡­ It is not a decision, I-It is more of a question...¡± I started to feel more and more insecure toward the end and started shaking. But I had to ask¡­


    ¡°W-Will, both of you accept me. No matter who am I?¡±  I got no answer.


    I started fidgeting and looking at the ground. ¡®Is this really fine? Will it be okay?¡¯ Thoughts I did not want to know about, plagued my mind.


    * * *


    Aizen and I paused for a second, the more time that passed the more she quivered. Was that really her question? Was she serious? I might be stupid at times. But these types of questions are the ones that you shouldn¡¯t make...


    Sigh.


    ¡°Ari, we already said it. We will take care of you. No matter who you are, besides¡­ It is not like you are in a worse situation than both of us¡­¡± I ended my sentence with a wry smile trying to change the atmosphere. Besides, despite me wondering who she is. There is no way she has it worse than us, absolutely none.


    Ari lifted her gaze from the ground and looked at us. She wanted to say something...


    "I guess, I will tell you... I-I--"


    "No need." I interrupted Ari. If she isn''t comfortable telling me, then I would rather not know.


    "Is it really okay?" She nervously asked.


    Both of us nodded and Fenri did his woof thing. Her hazy eyes cleared up and I could not see a single speck of gloominess nor uneasiness anymore. She started fidgeting while looking at the ground. This continued for a few seconds until she stopped. However, what Ari said aftewards was something I wasn¡¯t expecting¡­


    ¡°U-Umm¡­ T-then..."


    She paused and started fidgeting again with flushed cheeks.


    "C-Can I join your family?¡±


    I froze. Aizen had an amused smile as if expecting this just looking at my reaction.


    I guess it¡¯s fine? I don¡¯t think there will be a problem. Despite the weird family name¡­ It should be fine?


    ¡°I guess so? I don''t mind." I said in a carefree tone.


    ¡°I don¡¯t either.¡± Aizen added. ''Well then. I guess there is absolutely no problem if she is also okay with it.'' With those thoughts, I asked her what she wanted to hear.


    ¡°Ari, would you like to join our small family?¡± I said extending my right hand towards her. Her eyes sparkled and she eagerly reached for my hand with a cheerful smile.


    ¡°Yes!¡± She excitedly said while tightly gripping my glove. She slightly shivered after her declaration. ¡®Looks like I forgot about that¡­¡¯ I awkwardly muttered. My thoughts did not last long as a notification flashed inside my mind.


    [New family member: Ariel.]


    ¡°Ariel¡­¡± I reflexively said reading the notification. Ari walked close to me and started fidgeting more.


    ¡°Please just call me Ari¡­¡±


    She said in a quiet voice, however, she suddenly stopped fidgeting and stiffened a second after.


    ¡°More importantly, Yami... Why didn¡¯t you tell me you were the disciple of the [Master Craftsman]?!¡± Her voice was a lot louder and she started basically shaking me from tugging my clothes.


    ¡°What?!¡± I reflexively questioned her ludicrous claim.


    ¡°That family name... I did not think much of it when I first noticed it... But now..." She paused for a second.


    "It''s the same as the [Master Craftsman]! Why didn¡¯t you tell me?! No¡­ I should¡¯ve known¡­ You are that good at smithing. Of course, that is the only way!¡±


    She kept excitedly persuading. Aizen was just chuckling behind me. ¡®Why are all things this complicated?!¡¯ I inwardly complained. ¡®I had to do something¡¯ Thinking of a solution I knelt down and grabbed Ari¡¯s shoulders. I peered into her soul with the most serious face I could muster.


    ¡°Ari, you are right. Please forgive me. I just¡­ Did not want to tell anyone¡­¡± I lied through my teeth trying to sound regretful.


    I already hate myself for doing this...


    ¡°No, no, no. Don¡¯t worry about it Yami. I am sorry for being like this after you accepted me¡­¡± She frantically apologized from guilt¡­ ¡®Why am I so trash? Can¡¯t you just tell her that you aren¡¯t?! Useless self!¡¯ I kept inwardly scolding myself in anger. I slightly gritted my teeth but Ari did not notice and Aizen narrowed her eyes as if looking at trash¡­


    Yeah, I deserve that stare... I guess I should change the atmosphere as soon as possible.


    ¡°Well, Ari now that you know. I think we should all catch up to the wagons.¡±


    Everyone nodded and we started walking in a group. ''I guess that is fine? How does this work anyways? The system thing is so random at times... I can''t help but also feel annoyed about people''s constant staring. I mean, I get that I look like this, but... Can''t they just not look or something?!'' After a few minutes of thinking and inwardly ranting, I noticed. Ari was ever so slightly fidgeting with flushed cheeks. She called to us.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Yami, Aizen¡­¡±


    We both paused, standing next to her and started looking at her, to see what she wanted to say. She paused and looked at the ground. Then started talking in a pretty quiet tone while fidgeting.


    "I have one more request..." She paused.


    "What is it?" I asked Ari in curiosity.


    She was silent and her fidgeting increased, I noticed the tip of her ears became red.


    ¡°Can you both be my big sisters?¡±


    We both froze.


    ''Big sister? Isn¡¯t this too much?! Just¡­ How did this happen?! What did I do that led to this? So many questions yet so little answers...'' Trying to clear my mind, I took a glance at Aizen to see how she handled the situation. She was completely unmoving with wide-open eyes. I guess she is also quite shocked.


    ¡°Umm is it no good?¡± Our thoughts were interrupted by Ari¡¯s timid voice.


    ¡°I-it¡¯s fine. I am just not used to it, but I can try.¡± I desperately said. Aizen, on the other hand, was still thinking. She blinked a few times and regained her composure. She firmly looked at Ari with an unmoving stare. I noticed she started getting nervous, but shockingly all she said was.


    ¡°Only if you want. Hmph.¡± She ended up pouting and hugged Ari. Looks like she decided to go ¡®that¡¯ route huh¡­


    I took a look at Ari and she had a faint smile with closed eyes. ¡®I guess that smile is just worth it alone?¡¯ I muttered just by looking at her smile. It made me happy. I felt happy. My heart was warm. ¡®A family huh? I have come really far¡­¡¯ I nostalgically muttered.


    I noticed Ari was being firmly and lovingly embraced by Aizen. She had a warm smile on her face.  Seeing this I couldn''t help, but smile myself.


    ...


    I remembered something¡­ We needed to catch up.


    ¡°Well¡­ We should really go back to the wagons...¡± I awkwardly interrupted the lovely atmosphere. However, they both seemed to agree with the idea, seeing that they cheerfully nodded.


    We continued walking without saying anything. But we felt a lot more comfortable than ever before. The sky was getting dimmer. We had been walking for a few hours and hadn¡¯t seen the wagons yet. The only reason we did not think much about it since It was a straight road.


    A few more hours we could somewhat see the stopped wagons on the dirt-road and a campfire. ¡®Looks like we made it.¡¯ I tiredly muttered and breathed a sigh of relief. Aizen and Ari did the same. We walked in a more relaxed manner seeing we had finally arrived.


    ¡°Where were you girls?¡± I heard a voice behind me as we were approaching. Turning around it was THE Bloody Axe. Or lumberjack looking guy, for short.


    ¡°We had a few problems.¡± I awkwardly said keeping my answer vague. The lumberjack sighed and looked at us with bloodshot eyes, but just walked past us towards the camp. We walked towards the camp as well, when we arrived. No one really noticed us,  the sky was getting dark so everyone was eating their own rations and doing their own things.


    ''Also kind of weird that there were no mountains. Only grass plains. We did not take this route when we went to kill the dragon, so I guess it''s different? Also why is the grass unusually tall? It¡¯s taller than me...'' I muttered my thoughts out-loud.


    ¡°Should we camp a little bit further from the carriage?¡± I casually suggested.


    ¡°Umm, I think it''s a good idea.¡± Ari agreed with me.


    ¡°I can do whatever.¡± Aizen gave her usual carefree answer.


    We moved further away and entered a random spot in the tall grass. We started having dinner. I gave Fenri some raw meat from my inventory. We ended up having dried meat and some apples. A few bites in, and we all had disgusted faces. ¡®Looks like we made poor decisions.¡¯ I muttered regretfully.


    ''I guess, since I am the god of time himself. Cough. Inventory. Cough. It should be fine to buy fresh products? Also it''s unusually quiet. Wouldn¡¯t tall grass be filled with bugs or things? Ah well, this is fine.¡¯ I thought for quite a while, but I did not see a problem with it. We had already flattened the grass so it was more like a private area than anything else.


    ''I placed cloth to sleep on because I forgot sleeping bags were a thing. Although to be fair, it was a piece of cloth that sported great quality. That¡¯s right. They were disposable items from my inventory.'' I inwardly excused my actions as everyone was getting ready to sleep, we all decided to sleep a bit separated from each other, since decided that it was better, only for today. We all wanted to reorganize our thoughts.


    I made Fenri come over to me since I had remembered something that I needed to ask.


    ¡°Fenri, can you wake me up if you detect anything suspicious?¡±


    ¡°Woof.¡± Soft bark.


    ¡°If nothing happens, just wake me up in the morning before the adventurers. I will give you extra meat.¡± Fenri started drooling,  his tail was excitedly swaying and he also had sparkling eyes. Seeing that, I could only take it as a yes.


    I fell asleep shortly after.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 27) Sisters. (2)

    Alice.


    ¡°Ughh.¡± I groaned as I felt my respiration got ever so slightly cut off by a soft sensation. I slowly opened my eyes to see what could have caused it. I saw Fenri¡¯s white silhouette glittering under the moonlight. He was looking at me but I could not see his face; it was still night time. ¡®Wait, this means.¡¯


    ¡°Did something happen?¡± I asked in a whisper trying to clear my thoughts. Fenri did not make a sound, instead, he slightly lifted his head and pointed his nuzzle at the bushes. I could hear a slight rustle coming from the grass in front of me.


    Suddenly I felt a wave of bloodlust in front of me. I could not describe the feeling it was unsettling. All of my senses were alerting me something bad was about to happen to me.


    I rolled away from the cloth I was sleeping on in a hurry with those thoughts in mind. Suddenly, I saw a metallic glint come from the tall-grass and trace an arc. It all happened in less than a second. I could see a cut get carved into the ground and the cloth was sliced in half. I could also ever so slightly see cut pieces of grass in the air.


    ¡°Tch. Looks like it won¡¯t be so easy.¡± I heard a person click their tongue in annoyance and complain about it. The voice felt oddly familiar, I kept my eyes glued to the tall grass where the voice came from. I heard some more rustling and a silhouette wearing pitch-black armor came out. I could not see their face, however, I noticed a beard coming out from under the face cloth they were wearing. The person was carrying an axe. It was him¡­


    I narrowed my eyes looking at him.


    ¡°What is your intention?¡±


    ¡°You may deceive others however, you will not deceive me you bloody beastkin! What did you do to that dragon?! I visited the mountain and there was nothing there! I will make you pay for what happened at the guild; for lying about the dragon; for humiliating me. I already took care of her, now it¡¯s your turn!¡±


    He exclaimed taking his face cloth off as he was tightening his grip on his axe.


    Is this guy a warrior type? Didn¡¯t he almost kill me? Our differences in stats should be extremely big, yet¡­ it doesn¡¯t make sense. There must be something¡­ Something...


    The [Assassin] class. If the target is unalerted it provides some crazy bonuses to stats. I don¡¯t know the specifics but that must be it.


    ¡°So you are an [Assassin]?¡±


    ¡°Oh, I am surprised a furball like you noticed it that fast. However, you won¡¯t live to see the sunrise.¡±


    He said while licking his lips.


    ¡°Who won¡¯t live to see the sunrise?¡±


    I heard a cold and eerie voice coming from rustling grass behind me.


    ¡°H-How? Didn¡¯t I just kill you?¡±


    The lumberjack started stuttering looking behind me with wide-open eyes. I turned around to look behind me, it was Aizen. I didn''t even recognize her voice. I noticed her eyes were extremely narrow, only focusing on the person in front of her. I could feel her killing intent oozing out. I did not hear any more sounds coming from the lumberjack.


    ¡°I will deal with it. Just make sure Ari doesn¡¯t see anything.¡± Aizen casually said making an extremely forced smile while looking at me. I also heard her regretfully mutter something, I knew something was going to happen. I had to leave.


    ¡°...Nn.¡± I nodded and rushed towards Ari ignoring why Aizen was so angry.


    * * *


    With Kuro gone, I could not maintain my composure anymore. My entire body was trembling I wanted to destroy the thing that was right in front of me.


    ¡°Youuu¡­ How dare you...¡± I couldn¡¯t contain my anger anymore.


    I might have looked it over a few times. However... Trying to kill Kuro?! I know for fact Kuro can die¡­ It¡¯s something I don¡¯t want to accept. But I still want this to last for as long as it can. I don¡¯t want to be alone again. I don¡¯t want anything like that again. I have already made my decision. I will not let people interfere.


    I started looking at him. The thing that was quivering in front of me. I could kill him in so many ways. But I want to see the despair on his face.


    I took off the ring that Kuro gave me. Appearances?! Those are irrelevant at this very moment. All I care about is putting this insect in its place.


    ¡°W-who are you?¡± He started uncontrollably shaking dropping his axe on the ground as his legs gave way to his weight.


    I did not say anything and just pointed my finger at him. Using my magic made him unmoving; frozen. With his face looking my way, I slowly walked towards him. I could see his trembling pupils shake more and more, the closer I got. I picked up his axe. It was now my turn.


    ¡®I might have changed or at least attempted to. But... I cannot fully change. I hope both of you forgive me at least this one time...¡¯ I regretfully murmured grinding my teeth as I started doing what I did best.


    * * *


    I hurriedly ran towards Ari¡¯s direction not worrying about what was going to happen. Fenri quickly followed. Arriving to Ari she was awake sitting up-right, holding both of her hands close to her chest while trembling. I rushed to her side and started hugging her. I knew something bad was about to happen.


    ¡°I-Is the axe person gone?¡± She quietly asked while stuttering.


    Before I could answer her, she started shaking while looking behind me. I took a quick glance to the grass behind me, seeing what could cause the increase in fear. I saw a black mist slightly oozing out of it. Then I started hearing muffled high-pitched sounds. I didn''t quite get what it was at first. Hearing the sounds, I realized what they were... They were muffled screams...


    Thankfully Ari could not quite hear it. I embraced her tighter, thinking about what was happening. The horrible sounds continued for what felt like an eternity.


    Eventually, they stopped. Ari had somewhat stopped shaking and had ragged breath. Taking a quick glance behind me. The black mist was dissipating. I let go of Ari still catching on her breath.


    ¡°W-what¡­ was that?¡± She stutteringly asked while still trying to catch her breath.


    ¡°That is¡­¡± How do I even explain it to her?


    I heard rustling behind me. Fixing my gaze on the tall grass behind me along with Ari. I saw Aizen slowly come out of the grass.


    She was holding that person¡¯s axe. However, it was covered in blood. She looked almost completely clean except for her whole hand and a few drops of blood on her face. She had a neutral unchanging expression and her shoulders were stiff.


    Aizen took a quick glance at us. She breathed a sigh of relief and dropped the axe on the ground making a dull sound as it struck the dirt. After a second, she quietly sat on the ground while looking down. She began talking in a quivering voice, I noticed she was also shaking.


    ¡°K-Kuro, I know you said I changed, but¡­ I-I couldn¡¯t¡­ I am sorry¡­¡±


    Hearing this, my heart stopped¡­


    ¡°You did change.¡± I silently tried to reassure Aizen. However, she just shook her head.


    ¡°No¡­ I didn¡¯t¡­¡±


    ¡°You had a reason right?¡± I heard a quiet voice besides me, it was Ari.


    Aizen just slowly lifted her face to look at Ari and nodded. Her face looked empty and I could see her eyes were moist. Ari started thinking and muttering things; eventually nodding.


    ¡°Aizen¡­ I know what you did¡­ I understand what that person did¡­ While I think doing that was too much¡­ I think¡­. That, as long as you had a real reason then it doesn¡¯t matter.¡± She said to Aizen with a firm voice while fidgeting. However, I saw Aizen gritting her teeth and clenching her fist.


    ¡°Y-You don¡¯t understand! I had a reason but¡­ I prided myself in the fact I changed! Yet¡­¡±


    She paused as her voice lost strength.


    "I-I am not a dragon, nor a human¡­ Then what am I?¡± Her tone was incredibly quiet¡­


    ¡°You¡¯re neither.¡± Ari firmly answered Aizen. I could see Aizen loosen her stiff shoulders and knees, rubbing her face before lifting her head again to look at her with a slightly open mouth, she was speechless.


    Ari stood up and walked over to Aizen who was still sitting looking at her with moist eyes and a slightly open mouth from hearing her weird response. Ari eventually arrived in front of her and knelt. She spontaneously started hugging her tightly.


    ¡°You might not be a dragon or a human. But, I can say for certain. You are my big sister.¡± Ari lovingly told her. Aizen was frozen however, her concerned expression quickly changed. She had a faint smile as she embraced Ari with closed dripping eyes.


    ¡°I am a fool aren¡¯t I?¡± She quietly said in realization. However, Ari just hugged her tighter. I could see Aizen was no longer trembling or unstable.


    After a few minutes of silence, Ari finally let go of Aizen, who now had a flushed expression while she quickly wiped her face. Ari gestured me to come over. I ended up sitting next to Ari, and she started talking in a quiet but firm voice.


    ¡°I know that despite both of you saving me¡­ Both of you are far away from good people, I somehow feel that. But¡­ I still want to be with both of you. People dying is something I dislike. Rather¡­ I absolutely hate it. But¡­ It¡¯s nothing compared to not being able to be with both of you...¡±  She paused. ¡°Yami, Aizen¡­ I want to be your little sister.¡±


    Hearing this, I just hugged Ari. How couldn¡¯t I? Although¡­ If I get called big sister. I might feel weird¡­ But, I will think about it later¡­ However, Aizen on the other hand.


    ¡°Of course, I will be your big sister!¡± Aizen cheerfully exclaimed as she hugged both of us.


    After a few minutes, I stopped hugging her.


    ¡®A lot has been happening lately huh?¡¯ I muttered as I relaxed my upper-body. Letting it fall onto the ground,  I looked at the sky and started thinking about what was going to come in this adventure¡­ Ari and Aizen also followed and started looking at each other. Aizen started talking, she did not sound like her usual self. At all, she sounded caring and somewhat regretful.


    ¡°Ari, as you can see I am like this. So I hope you accept me. I hope you accept this foolish sister of yours.¡±


    ¡°I will.¡± Ari answered in a soft but caring voice.


    Now that the adrenaline was going down. I felt my eyelids getting heavy and ended up yawning, not being able to stop it. Fenri was already curled into a ball and soundlessly sleeping. I hugged Ari because of a strange habit I had built up. She quietly accepted it. However, I felt my hands being pressed and something warm that was touching my waist. It was Aizen. We ended up sleeping with everyone hugging each other. It was a bit awkward and my arms went numb but I ended up falling asleep anyway.


    Alice.


    A favorite helps a lot. (Shameless request...)

 (Chpt. 28) Travel.

    Alice.


    What with the strange sensation I am feeling? No, wait¡­ I have experienced this before. It¡¯s soft but somewhat raspy, I can somewhat feel a slight scratching and it¡¯s touching my cheek periodically. This is¡­


    ¡°Fewri.¡± I somehow said while drooling. Wait¡­ I can feel my face getting warmer. Slightly opening my eyes, I am bathed in the morning sunlight death-beam; urging me to get up from my comfortable position and sitting up-right. My arms feel like they have been roughly pressed down¡­ Wait¡­


    I glanced towards where I was laying down. Ari was hugging Aizen with a somewhat faint smile. On the other hand,    Aizen had a wide ear to ear smile. Both of them were soundlessly sleeping. ¡®Ah, that¡¯s right¡­ We fell asleep like that.¡¯ I muttered to the realization... I started hearing faint voices. I assumed people were getting up, so we had to prepare to go again. The blood on Aizen from yesterday was now dry. Somehow her clothes did not even have a single speck of dust or blood. ¡®Looks like high-tier items are really convenient huh.¡¯ I thought about it. However, now we had to leave.


    Walking over to Aizen and slightly shaking her to wake up. She slowly opened her eyes to look at me. Noticing it was already morning, she reluctantly got up.


    ¡°Make sure to clean the blood off. We cannot go back to camp like this.¡± I nonchalantly whispered in her ear. Her face changed from a smile to a somewhat grim one.


    ¡°...Nn.¡± She slowly nodded and started rubbing her skin. Seeing it was already dried, it just rubbed off. After a few minutes, her skin was somewhat pinkish-red, but she no longer had blood traces.


    ¡°Wake Ari up, we are going back.¡± I casually told Aizen, I also realized I forgot where the camp was, so, without thinking much of it, I chose a random direction to walk in.


    ¡°Wa-.¡± I heard Aizen¡¯s voice as I entered the tall grass. After a bit of walking, I arrived into a semi-open area. However, I had made a mistake¡­ I could not take my eyes off the ¡®thing¡¯ I was seeing. I somehow managed to unfreeze myself and simultaneously manage to not throw up. I turned back around in a hurry and went back to where I came from.


    Aizen had yet to wake Ari up as I came back, and as soon as she heard me enter through the foliage she glued her eyes on me.


    ¡°We need to talk.¡± Hearing my firm tone she slowly nods and I gesture her to come over, not wanting Ari to hear the conversation.


    I understand that she was mad¡­ But how mad? How mad do you need to be for it to end like ¡®that¡¯? Just¡­ how...


    Aizen arrived and stiffly stood in-front of me. How do I go about this...


    ¡°Why would you do that?!¡± I tried keeping my voice silent but I still managed to somewhat lose it.


    ¡°I-It''s because umm, because I-...¡± She started talking but her quiet tone shrinked until it became inaudible murmurs.


    ¡°I get that you were mad, but¡­ What can make you that mad?¡± I calmed myself down and talked more firmly. She was fidgeting but started quietly talking.


    ¡°Yami¡­ I mean Kuro¡­ I know that I failed to change, but it is just¡­ I don¡¯t, I didn''t want to lose you¡­ At first it did not matter to me that much when you are gone¡­ But now that you are back, it¡¯s different...¡±


    ¡°eh.¡± Lose me? As in dying? She continued speaking as I inwardly questioned myself. Her tone was more solid and firm than ever before. Looking into her eyes, they were unmoving staring me down.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to go through the same thing again. Please stay with me. I don¡¯t want it to happen.¡±


    So that¡¯s how it was¡­ Of course, I won¡¯t leave you, nor will I die. Not yet anyway.


    ¡°You really are silly.¡± I quietly said as I hugged her.


    ¡°eh.¡± She let out a stupid voice hearing my reply.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to say anything for me to stay with you,¡± I said as I tightened my grip, then whispered in her ear again.


    ¡°You won¡¯t be losing me any time soon. Don¡¯t even think about it.¡± My voice came out somewhat warm. Hearing my response she did not say anything, but I felt her head nodding over my shoulder as she hugged me back.


    After a few more minutes, she seemed to be way calmer than before, so I let her go. She fixedly looked at me, eventually arriving at a conclusion. At least I thought so because of the way she nodded. And then started speaking looking at me with unmoving eyes.


    ¡°Kuro. I will believe in you.¡±


    She ended up giving me a bright smile as she finished her sentence.


    While I don¡¯t mind being called Kuro it can certainly come off as weird seeing it is not even my name anymore¡­ ¡®I guess it doesn¡¯t matter.¡¯ I nonchalantly murmured as I shrugged. Also, we should wake Ari up.


    ¡°Um¡­ I guess we should wake Ari up.¡± I awkwardly said to Aizen seeing she seemed to be thinking about something. Hearing me, she quietly nodded. So, we walked over to Ari. Fenri was looking at me with glittering eyes making me remember something. The meat... As Aizen started lightly shaking Ari to wake her up, I took out a lot of meat. And gave it to Fenri. He happily and viciously devoured it. If I had to compare how much was the ¡®a lot of meat¡¯ I took out. I would say it was twice the volume of my head.


    Ari started to open her eyes and saw Fenri viciously eating the meat. Her eyes shot open.


    ¡°Eek!¡± She let out a panicked shriek.


    ¡°Ari, it¡¯s fine. It is just meat we bought earlier.¡±


    I instantly calmed Ari down. She quietly looked at Fenri and realized it was meat, so she breathed a sigh of relief. She looked at me with a disapproving face. Seeing what happened yesterday my guess was: She might have said she was fine with it, but it doesn¡¯t mean she needs to see someone being viciously devoured first thing in the morning. Or something like that.


    ¡°...Well, we should quickly eat to get ready to leave.¡± I unenthusiastically suggested.


    ¡°¡°... Nnn.¡±¡± I got two nods that lacked so much energy that made me sleepy.


    We quietly ate the dried meat, it was good at first, but it gets rather depressing to eat this for dinner and breakfast. Then, probably going to end up eating it for afternoon meal too¡­ ¡®Ahh just thinking about it is depressing.¡¯ I muttered in frustration while grabbing my head with both of my hands. Ari and Aizen were too busy looking at the dried meat with dead fish eyes as they ate in a somewhat depressed mood.


    We finished eating the meat, and with the help of Fenri, we returned to the camp. They were getting ready to go, I noticed the merchant''s gaze doting around. When the merchant saw us come out of the tall grass next to the dirt-road. He quickly approached us, but he was silent and was ever so slightly trembling.


    ¡°Did you girls see Clay?¡±


    ''Clay? Who is that? Wait¡­ Clay¡­ Clay¡­ Oh, that¡¯s right¡­ That guy...'' After a few seconds of thinking I decided to ask the merchant.


    ¡°...Well, did something happen?¡± I did not say anything about last night. Like hell, I would!


    ¡°He had night-watch duty but he hasn¡¯t returned¡­¡± His voice sounded pretty concerned.


    ¡°Umm, I heard a few screams at night and then found this.¡± Aizen joined the conversation and sounded somewhat scared as she pulled out a dog-tag. It was golden. The merchant instantly saw the tag and froze with wide-open eyes.


    ¡°We have to leave now! I regret that we lost him but what kind of monster can take out a gold ranked adventurer without anyone noticing?! We need to go now!¡± The merchant hurriedly said and started shaking. He left us in a hurry and started calling multiple adventurers to clear the camp in a hurry.


    Haha¡­ Well, it was technically a monster in the form of a fourteen-year-old girl, appearance wise... The monster is not that much shorter than me, then again I don¡¯t know how old people think I am. I kind of want to know now¡­


    ¡°Ari, how old do you think I am?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ I would say fifteen.¡± She said while scratching her cheek. I guess my question was somewhat awkward... Come to think of it... How old is Aizen? ¡®Ah well, not like it matters anyway.¡¯ I shrugged it off.


    I noticed the merchant was slightly panicking not knowing what to do. Seeing his emotional state I thought of something. With those thoughts in mind I approached him, everyone else followed not knowing what I was about to do.


    ¡°Umm.¡±


    ¡°... Is there something you need?¡± He noticed my somewhat timid voice.


    ¡°You see¡­ With the death of the glorious Clay, we no longer feel safe. So could we stay inside the wagon? If you want we can pay you the reward back¡­¡± I quietly said. The merchant looked at our group for a few seconds and ended up nodding.


    ¡°That would be nice but. What kind of adventurers hide? Anyways¡­ Going inside the wagon for all of you would be three gold-coins.¡± He said while extending his hand towards me. Seeing I only had one gold coin. I gave him one of the shiny-blue coins instead.


    ¡°A cobalt coin.¡± He reflexively said looking at it with wide-open eyes, he continued speaking.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know why you have this. But as promised.¡± He handed me seven gold-coins and let us board into the wagon.


    Once we were all inside the wagon, including Fenri laying on the floor. I noticed it was quite spacious, at least this one was. A few wooden crates of goods but there was a fairly nice amount of empty space.


    ¡°I must say, that was funny to watch.¡± Aizen casually informed me and then just laid down. I decided to lay down and place my back on Fenri¡¯s side. It was quite comfortable and he did not seem to mind it. Ari followed doing the same thing I did. And ended up leaning her head against my shoulder as she was softly murmuring something I could not hear.


    Maybe after a minute or two after boarding the wagon, I heard a lot of footsteps outside.


    ¡°We are leaving now!¡± I heard the merchant exclaim outside the wagon. He was still in a hurry, seeing we probably left within five minutes. It was quite an impressive feat, considering the number of adventurers and things to move. The wagon started moving at a faster pace than yesterday, I assume it was to leave behind the hideous monster that killed the great Clay. ''I wonder, how did I even manage to go in his direction? It was in a completely opposite direction to the camp... I guess I wasn''t paying attention to the camp''s morning sound.'' I thought and arrived at a conclusion.


    Hmm¡­ This is rather¡­ How to put it, it¡¯s not quite comfortable but it¡¯s not uncomfortable  It just feels odd, traveling in wagon for the first time... While it¡¯s not stabilized by anything and it is rattling quite a bit, I am not feeling nauseous, which is extremely good. It would be bad if I got motion sickness. Seeing I would need to walk everywhere if I had to travel long distances, probably.


    Ari seemed to have fallen asleep comfortably on my shoulder. I looked at Aizen and she was also sleeping. Fenri was sleeping as well. I was feeling uncomfortable, due to not wanting to wake anyone up. I decided to attempt to sleep or at least take a nap. Now, I don¡¯t know the difference between these two concepts. But I think they are the same except one is shorter?


    After a few minutes, my consciousness vanished.


    ¡­


    Suddenly, I started feeling an aggressive tugging on my clothes waking me up.


    ¡°Yami, Yami. Yami.¡± Ari was hurriedly whispering at me for some reason. I could also see that she was profusely sweating. After a brief moment, I somewhat started to realize what was going on. The first thing I caught on was¡­


    ¡°Die, you dirty bandit!¡±


    ¡°Over my dead body!¡±


    I heard battle-cries outside the wagon and heard some pretty dumb lines from people battling outside. I could hear metal clashing against each other. And a few people chanting. Normally chanting would be in another language but due to [Translation] skill, I hear everything in the same way. No matter the language or sound, it can be rather convenient but I am sure one day it might be a problem.


    Ari was looking at me worriedly and slightly shaking not knowing what to do. Aizen was asleep completely oblivious to what was happening outside. Fenri was looking at me, waiting for me to give an order.


    Well, let¡¯s see. People are killing each other outside. The most logical thing to do is¡­ Wait. I am not going to go outside while everyone is killing each other. Better wait for them to die, it would be kind of bad if the merchant died. However, I did notice as I was lifting my gaze further into the wagon I saw the merchant shaking.


    ¡®Wait when did he get here?¡¯ I instantly muttered as I noticed him. I guess that solves one of the problems now, doesn¡¯t it?


    The merchant noticed my gaze and gestured me to come over while shaking.


    ¡°Girly, is there something you can do with that wolf of yours?¡±


    ¡°Well I can protect you and that¡¯s about it.¡± I nonchalantly lied without feeling guilty.


    ¡°Please do so, have back your gold.¡± He handed me what I paid him as he said that.


    I turned towards Fenri.


    ¡°Don¡¯t let anyone that enters inside here, harm anyone.¡±


    ¡°Woof.¡±


    I got Fenri¡¯s affirmation so, I forcefully woke Aizen up by viciously shaking her. She frowned, but instantly relaxed as she heard the shrieks of agony outside.


    .


    ¡°Should we go see what is happening?¡± Aizen nonchalantly asked.


    ¡°Well, I guess.¡± I indifferently agreed while scratching the back of my head.


    Going out of the wagon, I saw some people dressed in black, like the ones back in the town I met the lovely inn lady. The longer I looked at them, the more they looked like some type of ninjas to me for whatever reason. They were still battling with an adventurer however, he got backstabbed and fell to the ground raising his hand dramatically as he fell. I noticed all but two horses ran away.


    Looking around I could see the three wagon of the merchant and a wooden-cart that was stopped in front of the merchant wagons. As I was looking,  someone took notice of Aizen and me.


    ¡°Oh, you two girls will make perfect slaves.¡±


    He casually said while making an audible licking sound, making me shiver. Aizen emotionlessly pointed her finger at him. He suddenly grabbed his chest in pain making a soundless scream and fell to the ground gasping for air. He did not seem dead so I guess that was fine. A few more bandits took notice of this and pointed their sword at us.


    ¡°A mage?! Capture her at all costs, she is strong. So be careful!.¡± A raspy voice resounded from somewhere and commanded while giving a warning. However, the battle didn¡¯t last long. They hopelessly fell to the ground one after another, thanks to Aizen¡¯s nonsensical sorcery magic thing.


    ¡°H-how?¡± The last bandit; the leader questioned with a quivering raspy voice and wide-open eyes as he fell to the ground. Making a dull sound like an inanimate object.


    As Aizen and I were looking around at the fainted bandits and adventurers, we noticed the wooden-cart ever so slightly twitched. We decided to investigate.


    Alice.

 (Side S. 5) Fateful Meeting.

    How did I end up like this? I am currently in a wooden-cart and I am the only one here. I cannot even move due to the rope. My mouth is covered by some dirty cloth. I can only watch and hear. The cart is being surrounded by multiple weird looking people. They were the group that captured me. It was all my mistake. They captured me because I was a [Mage], yet¡­ It has been a few days and...They have no realized I am not a [Mage]! Also, they took away my academy uniform and put me in rags. However, the most depressing thing is that. My long hair had been forcefully cut. I cannot see it, but I know it¡¯s in terrible shape.


    ¡®So this is why I should want to get a class?¡¯ I regretfully murmured. Although what came out, was a muffled murmur that could not be understood.


    I might have questioned the importance of classes. But now I see why even nobles need them. This world is not perfect. One needs a class to simply survive, although my doubts are still there. Is life all about acquiring a class and then dying? I am currently classless so, I should be able to acquire a class sometime in the future. However, right now I need to worry about something else. Where am I being taken? I don¡¯t have a slave choker and I am just tied down with my mouth covered up. Do they want to ask for money from my father? No¡­ That doesn¡¯t make sense, they captured me because they thought I was a mage.


    We left the capital like two days ago¡­ The guards did not check the cart for whatever reason. I wonder what will happen now? I rolled my body to look at the brilliant sky. It was beautiful, yet I couldn¡¯t help but feel depressed about what was going to happen. Was this alright? I could only see the foggy figure of the sky, not being able to make out anything I was looking at. My vision was blurry and I felt a somewhat weird sensation run-down the side of my eyes. I can¡¯t help but want to be saved. I am sorry... Towards everyone¡­


    I felt the cart started moving faster for whatever reason. Suddenly it stopped, making me roll over again, from the aggressive force I felt. I ended up hitting the front part of the cart making a dull sound. As I was getting over my pain, I started hearing some talking.


    ¡°Oh, what do we have here?¡±


    ¡°We are just a traveling group.¡±


    I recognized none of the voices and they all sounded pretty casual. I somewhat understood that one of them was an adventurer.


    ¡°Well, so why are you guys dressed like bandits?¡±


    ¡°That is none of your business!¡±


    They suddenly turned hostile and I heard the drawing of swords. It was somewhat exaggerated, but I could feel bloodlust surging in the air. The pointless conversation continued. I could not hear swords being sheathed so I think they still had their swords drawn out. Suddenly they started battling. Making dull noises and groans of pain, that subsided just as fast as they started.


    I started hearing the battle shouts of some people. I did not understand them.


    ¡°Die, you dirty bandit!¡±


    ¡°Over my dead body!¡±


    I mean, if he dies doesn¡¯t that mean he is dead? I don¡¯t get it at all. The battle continued until everything was silent. I could hear the surviving group getting away from the cart. I could only help but assume our group won. ¡®Looks like I won¡¯t be getting sa-.¡¯


    As I was muttering I suddenly heard the voice of one of the bandits.


    ¡°Oh, you two girls will make perfect slaves.¡±


    Girls?! However, I heard no battle. I just heard a dull sound strike the ground. Somehow, I had a bad feeling about this.


    ¡°A mage?! Capture her at all costs, she is strong. So be careful!¡±


    Someone started giving orders to fight the girls. I heard something unusual though. [Mage]? Why would a mage be outside the capital? I wonder. Suddenly I heard a battle start. Well, it wasn¡¯t a battle¡­


    All I heard were screams and things hitting the ground. The more things I heard, the surer and more scared I became. People kept mercilessly falling to the ground, they were being attacked by something. I started feeling terror. I wanted to move, I wanted to escape.


    With my trembling body, I started twitching trying to get out of the wooden-cart, I had to escape somehow. However, it was futile. I ended up hitting the cart''s floor as soon as I tried. When I attempted to somewhat lift myself up, I fell over again, making the cart somewhat tremble. I had a bad feeling as I started hearing footsteps coming towards me. However, they were no longer heavy like before. They were somewhat quiet and rhythmic without any rush.


    I started trying to move further away. I did not want to meet those people. As I was struggling to get away. I felt a shadow cast over me. Looking back, all of my fear vanished. I saw a silver-haired girl with orangey eyes. And a white-haired girl with¡­ Two different eye colors? That was odd. They looked to be about the same age. When they saw me, they tilted their heads and then backed off from the cart.


    ¡°What should we do?¡±


    I heard a somewhat concerned voice however, the response it got what somewhat cold and sounded tired.


    ¡°Haa? Why are you asking me? Didn¡¯t you save Ari back then anyways?¡±


    ¡°Yea¡­ But that was on a whim. This one doesn¡¯t even have a slave collar¡­¡±


    ¡°Well, doesn''t this mean she was taken for a special reason or something?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ Now that you mention it, it does make sense, I guess we could at least her untie her¡­¡±


    The conversation was dumb in my opinion. But¡­ I am glad they were going to save me. I heard them get close to the cart again. And the white-haired girl took the dirty cloth off my mouth with a somewhat disgusted face. Suddenly I felt the string or rope. Whatever they used to tie me down; break. Rather, it was cut. However, wasn''t she next to the white-haired girl? I glanced where the silver-haired girl was. However, I could no longer see her.


    ¡°Well, that is done. You can leave now.¡± Turning around to the source of the nonchalant voice. I noticed the silver-haired girl was already inside the cart standing up. Looking at me. She quickly got off and started going back with the white-haired girl.


    ¡°Umm¡­¡± I awkwardly called out to them and they turned around with visibly confused faces.


    ¡°Yes?¡± The white-haired girl answered while scratching her cheek. Her voice was not as cold nor as casual as the other girl, which made me relax a bit. I don¡¯t know where I am but I think it¡¯s better if they take me with them.


    ¡°Can I go with you?¡±


    ¡°That is¡­¡± She quietly said while scratching her cheek and turned to the other girl. She ended up shrugging in response. I noticed her face brightened seeing this.


    ¡°Yes, you can come back with us. We are going to the capital right now.¡± The white-haired girl casually said while gesturing me to come towards them. I quietly moved in front of them.


    ¡°I am Yami and this is Aizen.¡± She said while gesturing her hands towards the silver-haired girl. She did not move or say anything for some reason. I have never heard names that sounded like that. Are they from outside the human territory?


    ¡°Well we are going back to the wagon I guess.¡± The white-haired girl casually said while shrugging and started walking. The other girl quickly followed. I think they were Yami and Aizen? For some reason, I had no trouble remembering their names. I am guessing it was because they were names I had never heard before. I noticed all of the bandits groaning and some dead adventurers as I was walking, making me shiver. When we were arriving in front of the carriage. I noticed a bandit that seemed to have mauled by a wild beast.


    For some reason, Yami started muttering something when she saw said, bandit. But ended up sighing after she heard him groan. They entered the carriage and I followed soon after. As soon as I peeked into it, I noticed a girl that had the same eye and hair color as me. She was wearing some expensive looking clothes and was hugging a white wolf monster. I think its size was average, I had never seen one before.


    When she noticed me she tilted her head to the side, and started muttering things while holding her chin with one hand but eventually ended up nodding.


    ¡°So Yami saved her?¡± Aizen ended up nodding without saying anything. She seemed to understand the situation and completely stopped hugging the wolf. She got out of the carriage and stood in front of me.


    ¡°Nice to meet you. I am Ari.¡± She said with a bright smile while extending her hand with a cheerful smile for a handshake. I shook her hand, however, I noticed she was slightly trembling. But it did not seem related to any of this. At least she looked completely relaxed. She kept my hand grasped and dragged me inside the carriage. Once we were inside she stopped holding my hand and got behind the wolf.


    ¡°This is Fenri.¡±


    ¡°Woof.¡± The wolf barked?


    She waved her hand towards her for me to come over. I slowly went close to her, I noticed the wolf had a taming scarf. For some reason, it did not resemble the wolf from the monster drawing books that much. And no one inside here looked like a tamer. Ari made me pet Fenri. His fur was extremely soft and silky as if it had never gotten dirty. I noticed Yami walked past us and headed towards the back of the carriage. I noticed there was a well-dressed man in the corner. I think it was a merchant.


    I noticed they talked briefly and the merchant left the wagon. I took a look outside and two wagons were left, only this wagon was moving. Ari told me to sit down next to her. Yami and Aizen sat in front of us.


    ¡°So, how did you end up in the wagon?¡± Yami asked.


    I froze and started thinking. In the end, it was better to tell the truth.


    ¡°Umm¡­ I was in the capital and was captured for being a [Mage].¡±


    ¡°Oh, a mage? Can you show me a spell or something?¡± Aizen asked.


    I froze, I was not a mage, I just said it entirely wrong¡­


    ¡°I-I am not a mage. I was coming out of the magic academy and they captured me because of that.¡± They did not seem very impressed but Aizen started thinking about something.


    ¡°What kind of place is the magic academy?¡± She suddenly asked.


    ¡°Well, they teach you how to acquire the [Mage] class. And magic in general¡­¡± I awkwardly answered. It should be common knowledge after-all.


    ¡°Oh. Is there a reason you don¡¯t have the [Mage] class?¡± She casually asked. My heart ached.


    ¡°Umm¡­ I-I can¡¯t perceive or manipulate mana despite trying for years now¡­¡±


    I regretfully and quietly said it. I said the truth¡­ However, she tilted her head and seemed confused about something.


    ¡°Well¡­ If it¡¯s something that simple I guess I can teach you.¡±


    She casually called it ''simple'' unbelievable, she also said it while shrugging her shoulders. How can she teach me? I had been trying for a long time¡­ Yet no results¡­ I started to feel nervous; mad. I felt like she was lying to me but she said it so casually as if it was possible. I had to ask.


    ¡°H-how.¡± My voice trembled under the mixed emotions I was feeling.


    ¡°It¡¯s simple really. You just need to feel mana and be able to know it¡¯s there, correct?¡±


    She asked the obvious and I ended up nodding.


    ¡°Well, what if you were forced to feel mana?¡± I heard a dumb question.


    ¡°That is impossible. No one can directly control mana after all.¡± I tried to dismiss her.


    ¡°Just give me your hand.¡±


    She nonchalantly said, and then grabbed my hand. After a few seconds of her grabbing my hand, I felt a strange sensation. like if something was entering my body and leaving it, it was warm. I started to feel strange energy I had never felt before, I tried moving it, and it was surprisingly easy.


    ¡°Oh, you are doing well.¡± She tried to sound excited but it sounded more like she was interested in what was going to happen. She continued talking.


    "Just keep doing that for a few minutes." She let go of my hand.


    After a few minutes of doing that, I felt a weird sound in my head and a voice resounded inside.


    [Requirements met: Intermediate-rank mana perception acquired.]


    [Requirements met: Intermediate-rank mana manipulation acquired.]


    [Requirements met: Class Archmage.] Class bonuses have been applied.


    ¡°Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.¡± I let out a high-pitched voice in disbelief¡­


    ¡°H-How.¡± I turned to look at Aizen. I could see some kind of air flowing around yet when I looked at her she seemed to have no air going close to her¡­ No¡­ I noticed the ring she was wearing. It was dimly shining in a dark golden color emitting some kind of air that gave me an uneasy feeling. I think. That was mana, for some reason it seemed to be unmoving. I started looking around I noticed Ari had some white mana entering her body. I also noticed Yami¡¯s glove repulsed mana and no mana was entering her.


    However, soon enough I started feeling a head-splitting headache and held my head in pain.


    ¡°Oh does it hurt? You can turn it off.¡± Aizen casually informed me.


    ¡°H-How¡­¡± I asked in a struggle.


    ¡°Just think about it.¡± She casually answered again.


    How am I even supposed to think about it? Do I just say: ''Turn it off or something?!'' As I was thinking I noticed all of the weird colored air I was seeing, disappeared. What just happened was¡­ Unbelievable.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± I decided to ask Aizen the first thing that came to mind.


    ¡°Ah, well¡­ I got a recommendation letter to the academy.¡± She said while scratching the back of her head as she pulled out a letter with red waxing. I noticed it had the kingdom¡¯s crest¡­ Wait¡­ Very few people can give letters like that one. How did she even get it?


    Also, what was that? I heard intermediate-rank mana perception was¡­ Well, something only the best mages acquire at the end of their lifetime. Yet this random girl casually forced me to learn it. How is that even possible? Is it even possible?


    ¡°Come to think of it. We haven¡¯t heard your name.¡± Yami suddenly said bringing me back from my thoughts.


    ¡°Ah¡­ I am Cecil.¡± I said with a wry smile trying to organize my thoughts.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 29) Shiny rocks.

    Alice.


    I ended up making an agreement with the merchant. In short: We would escort this single wagon all the way of the capital and we wouldn¡¯t get paid at the adventurer¡¯s guild. But we would still get our request completions. The merchant seemed to have lost a lot due to the incident. And looks like he forgot he could carry the goods into this carriage. Oh, well, at least he believed in the fact that Fenri could deal with most of the things that might possibly show up. More importantly...


    I rescued a cute girl for absolutely no real reason. She seems to be younger than Ari. She has a cute name, but there is something that bothers me. If she came from the magic academy, why is she here? How did she even end up here? Besides based on what I saw regarding the letter, I can¡¯t help but assume that the academy is not something for normal people.  Also, she seems in pretty bad condition.


    Taking a look at her, I noticed that she doesn¡¯t have any bruises, but she is wearing nothing but rags and she is incredibly dirty. She could be mistaken for a slave at this point.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Yami right?¡± She timidly called for me, bringing me back from my thoughts.


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°Umm¡­ What is with your hair and eye colors?¡±


    She seemed to be fidgeting while asking the question. However, there was a problem. I had no answer to that question.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know. My parents I guess?¡± I shrugged saying something totally random. However, to my surprise, everyone but Aizen seemed surprised.


    ¡°¡±Parents?¡±¡± Both girls asked in unison while tilting their heads.


    Looks like I have cornered myself on this one. I guess it doesn¡¯t matter? Although this is going to be rather uncomfortable¡­


    ¡°What my ¡®parents¡¯ passed onto me. Kind of... If both of your parents have the same hair color, then you might also have the same hair color.¡± I finished giving a wry smile, I said the word without thinking much of it, but consciously saying it, is uncomfortable.


    They both nodded in understanding. However, Cecil was still fidgeting.


    ¡°So¡­ Did both of your parents have those eye and hair colors?¡±


    ¡°...No¡­¡±


    She paused for a second and then looked at me fixedly.


    ¡°Then, how?¡±


    She kept persuading¡­ Are kids really this curious?! Did I just get lucky with Ari? Well, let¡¯s see. I ended up in this world after dying. I have weird eye colors. I am a girl now. I have white hair now. Everything has completely changed, yet I feel pretty indifferent about it. Isn¡¯t that quite weird? Well, I don¡¯t know if people treat me different because I am a girl. I can certainly see that when they can see my ears they do. So, all of this happened for absolutely no reason. All I can guess¡­ It was because of that item. Well¡­ I guess it¡¯s some kind of curse?


    ¡°Well, thinking about it. It¡¯s probably better to not say it.¡±


    I answered Cecil with a wry smile while scratching my neck. But she was looking at Aizen and me, now. She still seemed to have plenty of questions¡­ Luckily she did not ask more things. But now, I had to think; Who is this girl? Should I use appraisal on her? The only reason I don¡¯t use the skill on people is because of how it felt when I used it on myself. It¡¯s¡­ Unsettling.


    I noticed Aizen was looking at Cecil. I looked back at her, she suddenly shivered. Wait¡­ Did this dragon really just do it? However, before I could punish her with a rock. (Not like I had one.) She started speaking.


    ¡°So, Cecil. Tell me about yourself.¡±


    Her voice wasn¡¯t cold, but it certainly did not feel friendly either. I don¡¯t really know what she was trying to accomplish. Cecil blinked a few times and started fidgeting.


    ¡°Umm¡­ I come from the capital¡­¡± She quietly answered.


    ¡°What else?¡± Aizen persuaded. I noticed Cecil looked pretty uncomfortable.


    ¡°...¡±


    She was fidgeting now and her legs were slightly moving.


    ¡°What about your family?¡±


    Somehow, Aizen seemed like a professional interrogator of sorts.


    ¡°Umm¡­ What family?¡± She awkwardly tried to dismiss Aizen.


    ¡°Oh, come on, don¡¯t be like that.¡±


    She jokingly said. However, her eyes narrowed and continued speaking.


    ¡°You are a noble right?¡± I noticed Cecil visibly gulped from Aizen¡¯s question. Although she seemed completely sure about it, she just voiced it like a question.


    ¡°Y-yes¡­¡± She quietly answered while looking at the ground now.


    ¡°Well, we are going to do this¡­¡±


    She dramatically paused while now grabbing her shoulder. I noticed Cecil was visibly shivering. Aizen told her in a quiet but calm voice.


    ¡°You will never disclose information that has to do with Yami or with me.¡±


    ¡°eh¡­¡± She suddenly let out a stupid voice hearing her request.


    ¡°So?¡±


    ¡°Y-yes.¡± She awkwardly agreed in a somewhat shaky tone.


    I wonder if she had to go that far? Although, knowing how far this journey has been, it¡¯s probably for the better if whatever she notices is kept silent. Although I did not think of such an extreme measure. Wait¡­ Could it be? The dragon is smarter than me?! Haha. There is no way. Absolutely none.


    After a few minutes of silence and her looking at the ground. I assume to think about what just had happened. After all, I did hear a loud ¡®eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee,'' after Aizen grabbed her hand. She called out to me.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Yami I have a request... ¡° I noticed she was frequently glancing at Ari, who just happened to be excitedly playing with Fenri.


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°Umm¡­ Can I play with Fenri as well?¡±


    I guess? I mean kids do seem to like him for some reason. After a bit of thinking, I noticed she was fidgeting and looking at the ground waiting for my response. I glanced around the wagon and noticed that it was pretty spacious. Like, we did not feel cramped at all. With those thoughts in mind.


    ¡°Sure.¡± I nonchalantly gave her the answer she awaited for. I noticed her ears twitched and she quickly lifted her gaze towards Fenri was sparkling eyes. The now three of them went near the coachman seat towards the back of the carriage. I was now alone with Aizen.


    Aizen sat down in front of me. I decided to ask her what caused the ''eeee'' sound.


    ¡°So. What did you do to that girl?¡±


    ¡°Well, I might or might have not made a mistake... She became an [Archmage], she did not have a class before¡­¡± she gave me a wry smile while scratching her hair as she slightly bowed as if giving me an apology.


    So¡­ She went from having no class, to becoming an Archmage? I mean, that is pretty good¡­ Although, pretty good is probably monster level in this world, from what I have seen¡­ I wouldn¡¯t even be surprised if there was only one [Grand Mage] in this world. Oh well¡­ Not like I care about it anyways. Come to think of it, I wanted to ask Aizen about something.


    ¡°Aizen are you interested in the Academy?¡±


    ¡°Well, I am interested because I have a feeling you will be too busy looking at rocks¡­¡±


    Hearing her nonchalant answer, something bothered me. It really bothered me¡­ My fist started to shake.


    ¡°They are not rocks!¡±


    ¡°Haa? Aren¡¯t they basically rocks? Besides, do you even need more rocks?¡± She sounded somewhat tired. But there was only one answer to her question.


    ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t I want more metals?! Aizen, it looks to me like you don¡¯t appreciate craftsmanship¡­¡± I gave her a cold gaze which made her somewhat stiff.


    ¡°... Rocks are great¡­¡±


    ¡°I know right?!¡± It looks like she finally understood the greatness of my rocks. ¡®Nn.¡¯


    After a few seconds, I noticed Aizen was looking at me and started speaking.


    ¡°I mostly want to go to the academy to see if magic has progressed or not.¡±


    I tilted my head hearing her claim. What does she mean by progress? I would assume it would remain unchanging from the game.


    ¡°As in? I honestly doubt they will be as strong as the people you once faced.¡± I told her the truth. I don¡¯t think I am getting ahead of myself, but people seeing a level 50 horned-dragon as dangerous is¡­ A joke. Fenri can take care of the dragon in probably ten-seconds or less.


    ¡°Well¡­ I suppose you are right.¡± She said with a slightly dejected tone, making a wry smile. However, I noticed she paused for a second and put her hand on her chin. Thinking of something. Eventually, she looked at me and took a deep breath.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you in the same situation? Do you think someone will match you in terms of¡­ You know what I mean¡­¡± She informed me unenthusiastically. I realized. She was right.


    ¡°...¡±


    If I wanted to see something amazing I would... Wait¡­ Wasn¡¯t the so-called disciple in the capital? I decided to call out for Ari in a somewhat loud voice.


    ¡°Ari, is the disciple on the capital?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    We heard her voice across the carriage. Her response made me loosen my shoulders in disappointment. Aizen seemed to be thinking of something again.


    ¡°Don¡¯t think too much about it. I am sure we will find something amusing there.¡± She casually told me. However, I could see her mouth curve into a grin when she said ''amusing''. ¡®Sigh. Sometimes I feel like she enjoys watching the things around us set ablaze¡­¡¯ I wearily muttered.


    I turned to look at the girls. They were sitting with Fenri. He would show his belly at times and roll around with sparkling eyes. I guess he enjoyed it a lot. Ari and Cecil were cheerfully smiling. It seemed like they were getting along well, despite the awkward interaction with Aizen earlier.


    With the constant shaking of the carriage, I couldn''t help but feel somewhat tired and sleepy.


    ¡°I am going to take a nap.¡± Aizen ended up nodding and started speaking.


    ¡°I might or might not throw a rock at you¡­¡±


    Hearing her cold voice made me shiver, but in the end. I opted for the safest option. I decided to wrap my head with my cloak and then sleep on the wooden floor. The cloak would serve as a cushion and probably save me from the rock if she decides to throw one. Although, I can¡¯t help but wonder where would she get a rock from¡­


    * * *


    ¡®I said I would throw her a rock. I want to throw her a rock¡­ Yet I have no rock¡­¡¯ I dejectedly muttered looking at the defenseless; sleeping Kuro in front of me. I certainly want revenge for that time on the cave¡­ But it looks like it won¡¯t be happening.


    I noticed Ari and the new girl were playing around. I think her name was Cecil? I do remember calling her Cecil. Well, it doesn¡¯t matter. I just wonder what is magic like now. It should¡¯ve changed right? It must¡¯ve changed¡­ Or will it be the same boring, chant, cast, shoot? I don¡¯t even remember how it worked anymore. I am too used to just automatically doing it. Well, it has been a long time since I last saw magic. I do remember some mages that tried to hunt me once upon a time saying something like...


    ¡®Damn, the auto-cast function is not working!¡¯


    ¡®Fire the damn spell already!¡¯


    ¡®It¡¯s not working?!¡¯


    They seemed pretty troubled about it and they did say some pretty weird words. But, I think I can assume that the ¡®auto-cast¡¯ is something I do? I mean, I don¡¯t really think about it. I just think about the spell name and it happens. Also, I know she is Yami now, but...  I can¡¯t help but want to call her Kuro sometimes.


    Thinking about it¡­ I did call her Kuro that one time¡­ Well, Ari did not seem to care about it. So, I guess it¡¯s fine. I don¡¯t think it would matter if she knew anyway. But thinking about it, why didn¡¯t she just tell her the truth? It bothered me more than it should have. But I guess she has her reasons¡­


    More importantly. A lot has happened in the last few days. From nowhere to go, to a family¡­ Also getting called that.


    ¡®Somehow, when I heard her words. I couldn¡¯t help but feel happiness. And call her sister back¡­ How embarrassing¡¯


    I muttered as I felt my face getting warm.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 30) More questions.

    Alice.


    Also, 100 ratings? Wow, you guys are amazing. I am even more surprised about the novel reaching 4.4 stars, thank you, everyone!


    I began to feel the rattle beneath my body, shaking me quite frequently. Waking me up and making me slowly open my eyes. As I start stretching my arms, I notice Aizen is sleeping while sitting down, she had a faint smile on her face for some reason. Looking outside, the sky was orange. Looking around the carriage I also notice both of the girls are sleeping with Fenri.


    ¡°Well, this is certainly nice.¡± I calmly said.


    I continued watching the orange sky and the passing trees for a few more minutes.


    Well, I absolutely have no idea what is going to come. But, it certainly seems interesting. ¡®Something amusing...¡¯ Huh¡­ I guess¡­ Wait¡­ Am I turning into her?! Something amusing does sound fun, but I ought to say. This is not bad at all. I am certainly enjoying it, although the more I find out about this world. The more it confuses me. It seems to be extremely similar to the game in terms of races and the system. But the land and culture are completely different¡­


    Also¡­ What is with the church anyway? What will happen next... [Neutral] attribute being forbidden because it¡¯s basically taboo? Well¡­ Even in the game, the description did say it was taboo¡­ Ah, well. Not like it matters. I am more worried about somehow losing any of my rings or my glove¡­ Or my everything?! Wait¡­ Aren¡¯t I basically a walking gold pile with all of these items?


    As I was thinking, I noticed the wagon stopped. I heard footsteps and I could see a shadow moving through the side wall. Eventually peering from the back, was the merchant. He had his mouth open to talk however, he noticed everyone that was sleeping. He paused for a second and scanned the insides until his gaze landed on me, as soon as he saw me, he gestured me to come out of the wagon.


    I leisurely came out of the carriage and stood in front of the merchant. The merchant had a now serene expression unlike before. However, I could see him ever so slightly trembling. I can only assume he was nervous or anxious because of what happened earlier.


    ¡°So¡­ Can you really escort this single carriage to the capital.¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡­ I might not look like one, but I am a tamer. And the silver-haired girl is a magician. We dealt with the bandits just fine, so I think there shouldn¡¯t be a problem.¡±


    I nonchalantly answered, he seemed to be thinking of something but eventually ended up nodding.


    ¡°I will take your word for it girly. I did not see how either of you took care of the bandits but I did see them knocked out. And that is all I need to know.¡±


    Hearing his somewhat calm voice, I couldn¡¯t help but want to look around. We were already in the middle of a town for some reason. The town seemed smaller than Mirl, but people didn¡¯t seem to look at me that much. Which was nice.


    ¡°Well¡­ We will meet tomorrow morning right here to continue going to the capital. You can look for an inn. Also¡­¡± He paused, making me look at him. He started talking with a wry smile.


    ¡°Can you wake your companions up so I can move the carriage?¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­ Yea¡­¡± I realized why he had that expression now.


    I went inside the carriage and woke Fenri up. Fenri ended up gently waking the girls, I had to wake up Aizen. Now¡­ Throwing her a rock would be bad. I guess I can just try a normal way? I decided to gently move her back and forth.


    ¡°Haah...¡±


    She made a weird sound but I kept shaking her. I heard her murmur things and then end up smiling. She was plenty cute, but I had to wake her up. After a few more seconds of shaking...


    ¡°Huh¡­¡± She finally slowly opened her eyes and looked at who was shaking her. As soon as she saw me, she visibly tilted her head in confusion. She clumsily and slowly looked around and noticed the merchant that was waiting outside, the girls that were standing behind me with Fenri. She ended up arriving at a conclusion and stood up.


    Since everyone was ready to go.


    ¡°We should find an inn.¡±


    Everyone ended up nodding. We exited the carriage and the merchant gave us a farewell wave as he left. I started looking around. We were on what seemed to be the main plaza, looking some more, I confirmed my thoughts. I noticed one guild town hall. It had the three guild emblems on its board. I could only assume it was for all of them at the same time. I mean the town is probably half the size of Mirl. So that is to be expected. The main plaza was way smaller than the last one.


    I ended up going towards the guild building with everyone awkwardly following me. People kept looking at us in confusion, we were a group of four girls and a wolf. Nonetheless, I continued walking. Eventually arriving in front of the building.


    ¡°Everyone stay here. Fenri comes with me,¡± I nonchalantly ordered everyone. Aizen nodded without saying anything. Cecil had a somewhat dark face from Fenri leaving her side. Ari did not seem to mind it much. I turned around and entered the building, leaving them behind.


    When I entered I noticed that there was a very long counter that had multiple receptionists, I also noticed boards hanging above them with the guild emblems. Everyone looked at me but they quickly stopped once they saw Fenri, I decided to approach the smiling adventurer¡¯s guild receptionist.


    ¡°What can I do for you?¡±


    ¡°Umm¡­ I just arrived here, and I would like to ask about inn recommendations.¡± She seemed frozen for a second, well I do think that asking a receptionist was not the best option.


    ¡°Well¡­ I guess you could go to ''thaaat'' inn. It does have bath but it might be on the expensive side.¡± Did I just hear this lady just say bath? I want one. We couldn¡¯t bathe this morning.


    ¡°Where is that inn?.¡± I decided to ask. For some reason, inns did not seem to have names.


    ¡°Ah, you just need to go north from the plaza. If you keep walking straight you will find a really fancy looking building. You will recognize it.¡±


    She casually gave me the poorest directions I have ever heard. I thanked her and left the guild. Upon leaving, I noticed everyone was waiting next to the door. I also noticed how some people were looking at our group and when I arrived with Fenri even more people started looking in our direction now.


    ¡°Well¡­ I got us an inn with a bath¡­ So we should go.¡±


    Aizen excitedly nodded, everyone else just nodded normally. ¡®I guess she really enjoyed the bath¡­¡¯ I muttered in realization as I turned around and began walking north in a straight line. Everyone followed. We attracted a lot of mixed glances, as usual, we were used to at this point, except for Cecil. She looked pretty nervous.


    As I was looking around while we were walking, I saw this really fancy looking building. It was a tall wooden building that was built with dark oak and normal oak wood. The pillars were chiseled with flowery designs, the door even had flowers engraved into it. Overall, I could only say that, it was incredibly fancy compared to most of the buildings I have seen here, also way taller. With that comparison in mind, I assumed that it was the building the receptionist described.


    We continued walking towards said building. Nothing much happened, however, I did notice some people showed weird expressions as we approached the building. I did not think much of it. Now with everyone in front of the inn, I decided to open the door. I heard a pleasant bell ring as we entered.


    Looking around, it did not look bad at all, except I felt tiny from the extremely high ceiling. Everything was made out of stylistically carved wood with flowers. The tables even had flowers carved into the borders. If I had to describe the decorations of the entire place with one word. I would say, ''flower''. Glancing some more around my eyes glued into the counter. Which surprisingly did not have any carvings on it and was just a big wooden rectangle. However, what made me keep my gaze on it wasn¡¯t the simplicity, it was the ''thing'' standing behind it.


    I awkwardly approached the towering figure with everyone walking behind me. Simply having to lift my gaze to look at him when talking made my neck hurt. The man had a hairy chest and big buff arms. All of the decorations did not fit this man at all. He was the complete opposite of girly.


    ¡°Umm¡­¡± I awkwardly tried to get his attention. For some reason he did not even look at us since we entered. As soon as he heard my quiet voice, I saw his eyes fix onto me. Making me shiver from the profound eye contact he was giving me.


    ¡°We would like a room with a bath¡­¡± I timidly said while fidgeting.


    ¡°Ah¡­ Yes, that would be one gold coin.¡± His voice was surprisingly gentle which made me stop feeling oppressed, I reached into my cloak and took out one gold coin, and handed it to him. He received it and looked at it for a few seconds, eventually nodding and handing me a room key.


    ¡°Straight up the stairs, last door.¡± He casually informed me and went back to looking at whatever he was looking at before. I tried following his gaze. But he was literally looking at the wall above the door.


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s go to our room.¡± I nonchalantly told everyone seeing the unmoving ''thing'' at the counter. I don¡¯t know if I would call him macho but, he is certainly scary. The girls blinked a few times and nodded. We walked up the stairs and continued walking straight. Until we arrived at the last door as he described, I inserted the key and well¡­ It opened. The room was about the same size as the inn from the beastkin lady. But, it had two beds made out of carved wood with soft looking wool. It also had a table and i noticed a door that led into another room, probably the bath. I noticed the hallway and room ceilings were extremely tall.


    I let everyone enter the room and closed the door behind us. Everyone went to do their own thing. Ari decided to get on bed and Aizen did the same, I assumed they just wanted to relax. Fenri joined them as well. I was left at the entrance with Cecil, I noticed she was fidgeting.


    ¡°Um¡­ Cecil, is everything alright?¡± I decided to ask her.


    ¡°Yami¡­ Are you some kind of noble?¡± She asked while still fidgeting.


    ¡°Not really¡­¡± I answered while scratching my cheek. Do I even look like a noble?


    ¡°Then¡­ How can you pay a gold coin so casually?¡± She questioned again, like if it was a big deal.


    ¡°It¡¯s just a gold coin¡­¡± I shrugged her off.


    ¡°That¡¯s the problem. Do you know how long it takes a normal person to get one?¡± She was no longer fidgeting, rather. She seemed annoyed. I decided to shake my head instead of answering. She started thinking, I also noticed she started pouting.


    ¡°Well¡­ I don¡¯t know either, but my father told me it was a lot of work!¡±


    I noticed her face became red saying she didn¡¯t know. ¡®How cute.¡¯ I pleasantly muttered. I decided to entertain her.


    ¡°Well, Cecil. I can tell you about myself if you want. Seeing you agreed to Aizen¡¯s deal and all.¡±


    She froze for a second and then excitedly nodded, she looked at me with sparkling eyes.


    ¡°Why does your glove make me feel uneasy when looking at it?¡± Does it? Ah well, whatever.


    ¡°It¡¯s an item.¡± I gave her the answer she yearned for. I don¡¯t really know if it makes her feel uneasy, but. Well it really was an item.


    ¡°How do you make money?¡±


    ¡°We are adventurers.¡±


    I kept giving her the answers she wanted. She seemed somewhat unsatisfied with it. However, she decided to ask something unusual.


    ¡°Who is Aizen?¡±


    What do you mean who she is? Well, she is an¡­ I actually don¡¯t know. A dragon? Not really, a monster? Not really¡­ This is complicated.


    ¡°I am, the strongest mage,¡± Aizen answered her from across the room for no real reason. I looked at her; she had the same evil-grin as always. ¡®Wouldn¡¯t it be interesting?¡¯ I remembered that face when I looked at her, it looked to me that she also wanted some fun for herself or something.


    ¡±Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.¡± I heard Cecil¡¯s high-pitched voice. Ari did not think much about the random lie. Cecil, on the other hand, was muttering things. Eventually, she turned to look at Aizen fixedly.


    ¡°Will, you teach me magic?¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    When Aizen heard this, her smile vanished. She started thinking instead. Cecil was waiting for a reply, however, seeing she wasn''t getting one. She turned to look at me instead.


    ¡°Yami¡­¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°If Aizen is the strongest mage, then you must be the strongest at something right?!¡±


    She excitedly asked yet another troublesome question, It made me scratch my cheek as I was thinking about all the multiple answers I could give her. ¡®I guess I will answer something that I might be able to show...¡¯ I muttered in defeat.


    ¡°Well, as far as I know, I might be the strongest tamer?¡± It sounded good in my head, but it quickly turned into doubt, making it sound like a question.  Cecil just ended up quietly nodding to my response. Now what? She doesn¡¯t seem to be fidgeting anymore. I guess that was good.

 (Side S. 6) Guildmasters.

    Alice.


    > A certain Inn keeper¡¯s pov.


    ¡°That would be 1 gold coin,¡± I smiled towards the recently wed couple that was going into one of my special rooms on the third floor. They just looked at each other and nodded. The man handed me a gold coin. In exchange, I gave him a key for the room he wanted. Both of them left enthusiastically while holding their hands and went upstairs.


    Sigh.


    I wonder if the girls are doing fine? They should, although I cannot help but worry about the white-haired girl. I mean, she seemed like a gentle and nice person, but I still don¡¯t understand how she hides her ears and tail. But, there is something that worries me more¡­ Seeing how she exposed her ears and tail around. Will she be okay? She seemed incredibly oblivious to everyone around her. Oh well¡­


    At least she has good companions, at least from the little I got to see from the other two girls. The silver-haired girl seemed to be nice and fun to be around, the golden-haired girl was¡­ Hmm. She seemed good but, I can¡¯t help but wonder¡­


    When I mentioned the ritual, the silver-haired girl did not seem to care much about it. Then again, I have a feeling she just didn¡¯t seem to care about people in general. However, the other girl, when I mentioned the ritual. I noticed she went stiff, but she did not seem shocked. The rituals shouldn¡¯t be common knowledge. I wonder¡­


    Well, it doesn¡¯t matter. The catkin seemed to have more than meets the eye. But, I can¡¯t really tell what it is or was. No use worrying about it. Oh, well¡­


    ¡°Excuse me.¡±


    I heard a somewhat firm, but cute voice. I lifted my gaze to see the source, I noticed a cute black-haired girl. She seemed to be the same age as those girls, but she was dressed in a manlier way, with what seemed like light armor.


    ¡°Oh, what can I do for you?¡± I gently asked her.


    ¡°I was wondering if a white-haired ¡°catkin¡± stayed here?¡± She casually asked; she also said catkin awkwardly as if she was unsure. Hmm, I wonder who this girl is. Well, it shouldn¡¯t matter if I tell her or not, they already left after all.


    ¡°Well, their group stayed here but they are no longer here.¡± I casually answered her question.


    ¡°Is that so? Ah, well. I just came here to tell her that she should probably hide her strength more,¡± she dejectedly said. But there was something that bothered me about what she said. ¡®Hide? I mean I do remember them being adventurers, but how strong could she be? I wonder¡­¡¯ As I was thinking, I noticed the girl in front of me was waiting for something.


    ¡°Anything else I can do for you?¡± I gently asked her.


    ¡°Ah¡­ No¡­ I was just thinking.¡± She seemed to have something in mind. However, before I could say anything. She began talking again.


    ¡°I just came here to check on them. But, whatever you figured out about those girls. I would like to ask you to not say anything about it.¡± This time she talked in a more serious tone almost emotionless. However, I was already used to people talking to me like that so I wasn¡¯t particularly shocked.


    ¡°I see, is there any particular reason for the request?¡± I curiously decided to ask.


    ¡°Ah¡­ I was just worried about them¡­¡± she said with a wry smile while scratching her neck.


    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, then I promise.¡± I gave her a warm smile as I said that. Although I had no intention of revealing much about them in the first place. I continued talking.


    ¡°I am happy that such a special group found another girl that cares about them.¡± Hearing my voice, the girl¡¯s face in front of me turned from somewhat happy to total seriousness, it even looked somewhat grim. She then looked at me right in the eye.


    ¡°I am a man.¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    No matter how I look at her, I cannot think of her as a man. But, it would be rude to address her as a girl again. I wonder¡­ What should I do?


    * * *


    The old lady that I have been talking to, is¡­ Weird¡­ How, can it be that I am dressed as a male scout and you still think I am a girl? Judging a book for its cover. I see¡­ Although the silver-haired girl said the same thing. Haha¡­ I think her name was Aizen?


    I noticed the old lady was still thinking about something, however, I had already said what I wanted to say, I should probably leave now.


    ¡°Well, that was all. Thank you for your time.¡± I gently thanked her while turning around, and started walking away.


    ¡°Wait.¡± I heard the lady¡¯s voice, I stopped and looked at her.


    ¡°Are you their friend?¡± She asked as soon as I made eye contact.


    ¡°Well¡­ I think acquaintance, is the better word.¡± I wryly said. ¡®Am I even their friend? They did not seem to mind me, so I guess it doesn¡¯t matter.¡¯ I thought for a second.


    The lady was thinking for a second while looking down. She looked at me once again and started talking in a somewhat worried tone.


    ¡°Please, help those girls if they ever need your assistance.¡± Ah, this is complicated. Will they ever need help?


    ¡°I will¡­ If that ever happens.¡± I awkwardly answered the lady and left the inn. I could feel her stare on my back as I was leaving, but I did not flinch.


    When I was outside, I started walking down the street. I had to go to the adventurer¡¯s guild. ¡®I do remember being told, that the girls took some type of request. It has been a few days since then, huh¡­ I guess they left? ¡® As I was muttering, I realized everyone was looking at me. I was now the center of attention now that those girls were gone, I had no choice but to start walking faster.


    I noticed the guild and basically rushed towards it. A few adventurers looked at me and tilted their heads, but It didn¡¯t matter. After a few more seconds, I finally entered the guild. However, I noticed everyone was making a fuss.


    I decided to look at the center of attention, it was the guildmaster. He was holding a letter that had a blue envelope and a black wax seal. ¡®It must be important. Huh¡­¡¯ I muttered from seeing the urgent blue letter. However, that didn¡¯t matter.


    I walked in front of the guildmaster and basically got in his way.


    ¡°Who might you little girl be?¡± he asked, clearly looking impatient.


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter, here, hand me that letter.¡± I said while taking my two adventurer tags out. He completely stopped moving for a second and took a step back.


    ¡°Y-You are¡­¡± He started trembling, yes, yes, yes, I am. Now, onto what matters.


    ¡°Can you give me the letter now?¡± I tiredly asked the guildmaster. I was not going to wait for him to calm down.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you come to my office instead?¡± He hurriedly said. ¡®I guess the office is fine too. I just wanted to know why the letter is being sent anyways.¡¯ I agreed to his suggestion with those thoughts.


    He led me upstairs towards his office, looking back. It was the same office I went to, to make the recommendation letter. When I entered, no one was inside so I did not think much about it. I also noticed that, as I was going up the stairs; the entire guild was completely silent, almost like if there hadn¡¯t been a fuss earlier.


    ¡°Well, here we are.¡± He said while opening the door, as he relaxed his shoulders. He then entered the room and paused for a second to take a breath.


    ¡°Come in,¡± he said after breathing and gestured me to pass.


    I ended up sitting in front of his desk. He quietly sat behind his desk and looked at me, he was visibly sweating.


    ¡°What can I do for you?¡± He was quite submissive despite the things I have heard about this person. Well, not like it matters. I only care about the paper.


    ¡°I just wanted to know about the letter.¡±


    I noticed he tensed up even more.


    ¡°Ah, the letter¡­ Right¡­ You did ask for it, not like it mattered if you asked or not.¡± He dejectedly handed me the letter. I quickly opened it and started reading it.


    ¡°This is¡­¡± I froze from the contents. However, there was something odd.


    ¡°How did you get the craftsmen guild information?¡± I curiously asked. ¡®While the guilds are technically the same type and share existences, information regarding members is not shared across. It is only stored in guild cards. Something is wrong.¡¯ I inwardly affirmed my knowledge. I noticed the guild master took another breath and started fumbling below his desk looking for something. I noticed something that had a metallic glint to it, as he pulled it out I noticed what it was. He handed it to me to look at it in more detail, my eyes went wide-open.


    "This is..."


    ¡°The guildmaster of the craftsmen guild acknowledged that. There was absolutely no way he can beat that girl in smithing," he said as he was looking down on his desk with a grim face. After taking another breath he started talking again. "A day after I met that girl, I saw him looking visibly nervous, I decided to ask about it. We ended up concluding that  we should make everything into a single letter instead of splitting it. since it concerned both guilds.¡±


    ¡°I can see why,¡± I said while scratching my cheek.


    But this was rather problematic. I knew she was strong, but to think she was over level 80¡­ I would certainly like to think her smithing is not that high of a level. Although seeing this dagger¡­ It¡¯s¡­ Troublesome¡­ I can only assume she is nearing level 120¡­ Wait¡­ Doesn¡¯t that make her the strongest human alive? She just practically came out of nowhere. Also, seeing how carefree she is. You would think she hasn¡¯t even experienced life yet¡­ I wonder¡­


    ¡°Dan.¡± The guildmaster called out to me, then somewhat narrowed his eyes while looking at me. I wanted to say something but decided not to. He continued talking. ¡°Why would a mithril ranked adventurer be here¡­ And to think someone as famous as you looked like that¡­  ¡± I knew those two things were going to be mentioned by him¡­


    ¡°Does it really matter?¡± I casually said my thoughts out loud.


    ¡°Of course it does!¡± He exclaimed while smashing the table. He calmed down for a second and started talking again.


    ¡°If those girls do something bad at the capital, who will stop them?¡±


    ¡°Nothing bad will happen.¡± I indifferently replied, which seemed to annoy the guildmaster but I didn¡¯t quite care, it would¡¯ve been bad to make him angry. ¡®I guess I will have to tell him my own thoughts regarding the girls.¡¯ With those thoughts, I started talking.


    ¡°They probably won¡¯t do anything, based on the little I saw. They are too busy treating each other like family. My guess is. No matter what happens, if nothing is attempted against any of them. Nothing will happen.¡± I casually informed him.


    ¡°H--.¡±


    ¡°GUILDMASTER!¡±


    As he was about to talk, a high-pitched voice came from outside and slammed the door. I looked at the door to see who it was. I saw a panting receptionist. She slowly walked into the room with a paper in hand, it looked like a report. After a few seconds of recovering her breathing, she finally started talking, but her tone didn¡¯t exactly bring good news.


    ¡°Guildmaster... Clay¡­ The bloody axe¡­ Has been found dead¡­ Rather¡­ What remains of him.¡±


    I decided to look at the guildmaster since he did not seem to respond. Now that I had looked at him, he seemed to have had his soul sucked out. He had white eyes and pale skin from hearing the news. However, there is one big issue with all of this. Who is Clay?


    ¡°Um, this might be a bit awkward. But who is Clay?¡± I ignored the atmosphere and decided to ask; the receptionist stiffened.


    ¡°He is the best [Assassin] around here. And also, the only axe-wielder!¡± she answered to me while shaking her hands in the air. I could see her frustration.


    Axe-wielder? I do remember seeing someone that looked like a lumberjack. But, he did not particularly look like an assassin to me. How could I miss something like that? Hmm¡­ I am curious now.


    ¡°I know, I shouldn''t keep asking. But, why did he dress up as a warrior?¡± The receptionist looked at the guildmaster for an answer, but I noticed he was just frowning while looking at his desk.


    ¡°... No one knows, he said something along the lines of. ¡®It¡¯s better to surprise them.¡¯¡± She said while scratching her cheek.


    It looked to me that my casual and dumb questioning calmed her down a little. Although what she said made sense, why wouldn¡¯t an assassin want to surprise their target? Oh, well. Now that he is dead it doesn¡¯t really matter, does it?


    ¡°How did he die.¡± I heard the guildmaster¡¯s commanding and cold tone, which made the receptionist straighten herself and start sweating.


    ¡°W-We, don¡¯t know much. All we found was: pieces of his body and his axe. Which was completely covered in blood¡­¡± I noticed that as she finished her sentence she was turning pale. Before the guildmaster could say anything, she held her mouth and sprinted out of the room while desperately looking for something. ¡®Did she see the corpse or something?¡¯ I questioningly muttered.


    After a few seconds of looking at the door and silence, I heard a sigh behind me.


    ¡°Dan¡­ I will need you to leave, however, before I do so. Why would you out of all people need to be here?¡± He seemed somewhat annoyed. So to avoid the wrath of the bear I casually replied.


    ¡°Well, I kind of grew tired of papers. So I thought, why not take a break from paperwork and go back to what I used to do.¡± I gave him a wry smile as I finished talking. I expected him to be extremely mad, despite of my position, however, he just sighed instead.


    ¡°I see¡­ Well Dan, nice to meet you for the first time. But I think you should return to the capital before it blows up.¡± He gave me an evil grin as he finished his sentence. It made me stiff.


    ¡°... Yeah¡­¡± After giving him a bitter smile, I stood up and left.


    ¡®I guess I cannot put away those papers away huh? Well, at least I don¡¯t need that letter sent to me anymore. Now, it just needs to be sent to the craftsmen guild leader. To think that would happen¡­ Also, no matter how much I train, I still look like a little girl¡­ Sigh. At least I took a vacation¡¯ I muttered with mixed emotions as I was walking out.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 31) Bath time.

    Alice.


    Also, I did not expect to be the last chapter to be the ''worst'' chapter. (Technically speaking.) I do hope the side story that comes when they arrive at the capital gets love though. I know you all love cliffhangers, yeah? Or maybe not... Hmm...


    ¡®Well, now that she no longer has questions? I think? I mean, I took a quick glance at her, and she did not seem to be fidgeting or anything like that anymore¡¯ I thought. She was still looking at Aizen, but Aizen did not say anything. After a few more seconds of her thinking, Aizen scratched her cheek.


    ¡°Sorry, but I don¡¯t think I can teach you magic.¡±


    ¡°B-But, what about your mana control?¡±


    Aizen just gave her a wry smile.


    ¡°That is impossible.¡± She tried to sound gentle, but I saw the child¡¯s hopes and dreams shatter, as her face turned grim and lifeless. ¡®Ah well, I don¡¯t know what Aizen was expecting. Although...-¡¯ I looked at her and she quickly noticed my gaze. I spoke in a condescending tone.


    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be fun?¡±


    ¡°Shut up.¡±


    She ended up pouting. However, that did not last long. I noticed her face lit up, and then she looked at the other door with sparkling eyes as if remembering something.


    ¡°I am going to take a bath.¡± she suddenly informed me.


    Right¡­ I also want a bath. But, there is something. That bothers me, should I or should I not let this girl know I am a beastkin? I wonder, she doesn¡¯t seem like a bad person, but her dad is a noble or something right? Wouldn¡¯t that be, troublesome? Hm¡­ I need help with this one.


    I noticed Aizen went towards the bath, Ari also followed, however. I still needed her help.


    ¡°Ari,¡± I called out for her assistance. She looked at me and tilted her head. I just decided to quietly point at the ring in my hand with my free hand. She instantly shook her head. I figured... I looked at Aizen and she shrugged. ¡®I guess there is no other choice.¡¯ I dejectedly muttered as they were entering the bath.


    I want to take a bath, but this is rather complicated¡­ I guess using the ring inside the bath doesn¡¯t matter, does it? Without the ring it''s more comfortable, but considering I don¡¯t quite know this girl... I mean looking at her she seems pretty innocent but, she is the daughter of a noble right? Aren¡¯t rich people bad? I guess I will wear my ring for now.


    ¡°Umm¡­¡± Cecil called out to me.


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°Can I take a bath as well?¡±


    She said while fidgeting with her hair and slightly twitching while looking down. I looked at her and remembered she was still dirty. I kind of just had forgotten about it.


    ¡°Ah, yes. We should take a bath.¡± I casually said and went towards the bathroom. She quietly followed.


    I opened the door, and the bath was¡­ Weird¡­ The layout was the same as the previous one, but. Everything was wood, the only things that weren¡¯t made out of wood were some baskets for clothes and the bathtub itself with a section of the floor next to it. The bathtub itself was even bigger than the last one; being made out of some white-dotted gray rock. I think it was granite.


    I noticed Aizen was washing Ari¡¯s hair for some reason. The granite floor did not look slippery or wet for that matter. I took off my clothes and put them on a basket. Cecil also took off her ¡®clothes¡¯ and looked somewhat hesitant to put them in the basket she was holding, after a few seconds of looking at it fixedly, she finally decided to put them inside the basket while sighing.


    ¡®Well, I can see why she would be like that. I wouldn¡¯t be exactly pleased with dressing in rags either.¡¯ With those thoughts, I dragged her towards the bathtub to wash her on the section of the floor next to the bathtub. I didn¡¯t quite understand how the wood didn¡¯t get ruined from the constant humidity that would normally be in a bath. But it wasn¡¯t something I particularly understood.


    I sat her down on the floor and started washing her hair with water. There was no soap on this bath either.


    ¡°Um¡­ Yami, I can wash myself,¡± she said while looking at me.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± I just gave her a normal smile and continued scrubbing her hair. It took quite a few minutes but her mistreated hair looked golden just like Ari¡¯s I moved onto her arms and neck, after that. I paused. ¡®Wait¡­ What am I doing? I-I shouldn¡¯t be doing this.¡¯


    ¡°Yami?¡±


    ¡°You said you could wash yourself right?¡±


    She slowly nodded from my weird question. Seeing her affirmation I just moved aside and started scrubbing myself. ¡®While I might look like a girl now, I still don''t think doing that was right...¡¯ With those thoughts in mind, I left Cecil wash herself with a slightly twisted mouth. I could visibly see her confusion but it was better than nothing.


    ¡°K-Yami. How long are you going to keep doing that? Just come in.¡±


    Aizen called out for me with a slight stutter. I looked at Cecil and now she looked completely clean, and while her hair was extremely uneven she no longer looked like a slave, so that was good. ¡®I guess I can go into the bath now?¡¯ With those thoughts, I grabbed Cecil and pulled her towards the bathtub.


    Once we were inside the bathtub I let her do whatever she wanted. I chose to just sit down and relax myself while soaking in the warm water. A few minutes passed, everyone was now relaxing on the tub. But, I had remembered something.


    ¡°Cecil, what kind of place is the capital?¡± She paused for a second. And then looked at me.


    ¡°It¡¯s boring.¡± She nonchalantly informed me, although it wasn¡¯t what I was looking for.


    Hmm, I wonder. How do kids work? Wait¡­ If I ask her why it¡¯s boring wouldn¡¯t she explain everything that she finds boring? I am so smart.


    ¡°Why is that?¡± I curiously asked.


    ¡°Well¡­ Everything is the same.¡±


    This is¡­ No good at all, Ari wasn¡¯t like this at all¡­ I guess I will just have to do a very specific question to which she should probably answer with what I am looking for.


    ¡°Why do you find it so boring and why does everything feel the same?¡± I did it.


    ¡°Well, because my life was always the same. Academy, behave well, sleep.¡±


    She dejectedly said. It was something insightful... On her family that is. I wonder, what I could actually ask her. Hmm¡­ That¡¯s it, I know now.


    ¡°Cecil.¡± Before I could ask her, Aizen called out for her.


    ¡°Yes?¡± She replied while tilting her head from being suddenly mentioned.


    ¡°Tell me things I should know about the capital.¡± Aizen casually commanded her.


    I noticed Cecil went into deep thoughts while placing her hand on her chin. ¡®Silly dragon, there is no way it would work.¡¯ I joyously muttered. However, I noticed Cecil stopped thinking and looked at Aizen once again.


    ¡°Well, There are two academies, which are magic and combat. Well, I don''t think I need to explain each of them.¡± She omitted the details with a wry smile and continued speaking. ¡°The most important guild branches on this continent are in the capital. And¡­ Well, the capital is a boring place with lots of people, a noble district and a royal family with an amazingly big castle. Also, the slums are scary,¡± she shuddered as she finished her talking.


    ¡®Was it really that simple?!¡¯ I grabbed my head in frustration, the only person that looked at me worriedly was Cecil. However, she did not say anything. Instead, she looked for help towards Ari and Aizen, both of them shrugged.


    ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Aizen was audibly thinking about something, it made me look at her and relax a little bit. I think I was overthinking it anyways.


    ¡°Cecil, you said you were going to the magic academy, right?¡±


    ¡°Well, yeah.¡±


    ¡°What did you learn there?¡± Aizen was onto something.


    ¡°Well, for the most part, it was mana perception and manipulation until we got a class, so¡­¡± She had a flushed face for saying that. But continued talking to Aizen.


    ¡°I remember getting an actual basic class with an elf, he had a short temper and seemed arrogant.¡±


    ¡°Ho-oh, how amusing. I would like to see that.¡±


    Ignoring Aizen¡¯s amusement, there was something that bothered me. Elves seem to be fine, dwarves are fine, beastkin aren¡¯t? I have to ask.


    ¡°Cecil, are there beastkins in the capital?¡± She froze and started muttering.


    ¡°Well¡­ My father said I wouldn¡¯t want to know where they end up.¡± She innocently said while fidgeting, I guess I don¡¯t want to know where they end up either¡­ I also noticed Ari seemed stiff. Now that I think about it, she was stiff that time with the inn-lady too.


    ¡°Ari, are you fine?¡± I was worried.


    ¡°Ah¡­ Sorry, I was just hoping the beastkins were fine. I-I really hope so¡­¡± Her face became grim towards the end, making me think about what could make her think like that. ¡®Is it because of the inn lady? I wonder¡­¡¯ As I was thinking, I noticed Ari¡¯s eyes lit up.


    ¡°Um, sorry about that.¡± She quickly apologized realizing her weird behaviour. I noticed Aizen had been thinking the entire time.


    ¡°Cecil, did the elf say something interesting?¡±


    ¡°Interesting?¡± She tilted her head while looking at Aizen.


    ¡°Yeah, interesting.¡± She affirmed with a faint smile.


    ¡°Well¡­ I don¡¯t know if this is interesting. But the elf spoke seriously when mentioning the [Neutral] attribute, calling it the ¡®death¡¯ attribute or something." She awkwardly said. I noticed Aizen nodded as if it didn¡¯t matter. Ari, on the other hand, paused again. However, after a few seconds, she just pretended like nothing happened. Weird.


    We continued talking about less serious topics for a few more minutes until we dejectedly left the tub and dried with some random cloth that Aizen found. It kind of looked like a cotton towel so I guess it was fine. As we were getting dressed I noticed Cecil was dejectedly looking at her basket. ¡®Ah, right. She needs new clothes¡¯ With those thoughts in mind, I quickly got dressed up and started looking through my inventory.


    ¡®This should do.¡¯ I muttered as I noticed something rather peculiar. Looks like I had missed it last time. It looked like some type of sailor outfit, thinking back. I do remember having the male version, so that must¡¯ve been it. I handed it to her, seeing it. Her eyes were wide-open.


    ¡°I-I didn¡¯t know you had a magic academy uniform,¡± she shockingly said. But there was something wrong, I don¡¯t remember having a uniform for the magic academy. I don¡¯t even know what it looks like.


    ¡°That¡¯s not a uniform.¡± I decided to inform Cecil who was now putting it on.


    ¡°Really? It looks like one.¡± She said while tilting her head.


    Well, I guess it doesn¡¯t matter if it looks like their uniform or not. It¡¯s not like it bothers me if I lose the item or not; it was just an [Uncommon] tier one anyways. She looked happier about having proper clothes. So I figured she could have it as a gift.


    ¡°If it looks like your uniform then I guess you can keep it.¡±


    ¡°Nn!¡±


    She excitedly nodded now fully dressed. We left the bath without saying much after. I noticed Fenri was now sleeping in the living room next to one of the beds. I looked at the beds to see how we would arrange to sleep.


    ¡°I take Ari and you take Cecil.¡± Aizen nonchalantly informed me.


    ¡°...Nn.¡± I slowly nodded from the sudden declaration. Ari looked somewhat sad about it but did not say anything. I guess Aizen just liked Ari over Cecil or something. Which I completely understood. Not like Cecil was a bad girl, but we had just been with Ari longer.


    I ended up sleeping with Cecil, she didn¡¯t seem that willing at first, but she ended up complying after she was getting dizzy.

 (Announcement.) Apology, I guess.

    Alice.


    Hey, it''s me. I am back. You knew it was going to happen. Good and bad news. As everyone can see there was no chapter. Well, a lot of you probably did not notice. Anyways.  I will be doing a double release on Tuesday/Wednesday; to make up for it. Double release... Have not said that in quite a while... Been writing a lot, but it''s been getting frustrating. This novel started off with a base made out of sticks; no direction to go. I''ve been slowly but surely giving it direction. I understand the first few chapters can put-off a lot of people.


    Anyways, that''s not the point. I have been working on a second novel, however, it has been frustrating. I have deleted about ten prologues. That is around 30k words scrapped. So... Yeah... It''s hard when you want to outdo yourself.


    While I love this novel, it''d be hard to say that I am proud of it. I have way too many regrets on this one. I have been slowly learning to write on this ongoing process. But there are simply unfixable things. I am proud of having people read my work; something I would personally dump on a trash-bin if I hadn''t decided to post it. But, would I tell people to read my novel as a serious recommendation? No, never. That''s what I want to accomplish with the next one. I don''t want a new, ''it''s an enjoyable read but not my favorite.'' My greedy self wants it to be a favorite.


    I am sure in spite of the glaring mistakes, in spite of the unplanned plot at times. This novel has been slowly but surely improving. However, if I had known it would get this big. I wouldn''t have made some of the choices. E.g: Heterochromia. Oh god...


    Anyways, that''s all I wanted to say. Sorry to bore you all with my monologue.

 (Chpt. 32) Information.

    Alice.


    Cough, I hope you people enjoy this chapter. Cough. Have a good day, and thanks for reading.


    I started hearing the door being periodically and gently knocked; waking me up. As I was getting up, I heard the door knocking again, this time it wasn''t really gentle.


    ¡°I am coming.¡±


    I let the person outside that I am up, and there is no need to keep knocking. However, there was no reply coming from the door.


    Bang.


    Bang!


    I could see the door practically being punched, making horrible creaking sounds and literally folding from the thunderous force. Prompting me to start trembling.


    BANG!


    What is happening?! Who is outside?! Wait¡­ This is not even an inn?! Where am I?! Hello?! Looking around all I see is nothingness and then there is a door that is repeatedly being smashed. What is going on?!


    As I was thinking I saw the door get blasted. What was behind the door was not human, I could not see the head of the thing.


    ¡°Breakfast is here.¡± It was a gentle voice.


    Wait...


    ¡°Breakfast is here.¡± Hearing the voice one more time, my eyes open again somehow. Except I was at the inn. ¡®What was with that dream?¡¯ I confusedly muttered as I went towards the imposing and daunting door. It was the room door, however, it made me feel weird considering the dream I had. I opened the door. I saw the man, I could not see his head because he was too tall for the doorframe.


    He looked down to see me and gave me whatever he was holding and then left. It was warm and smelled nice. Looking at whatever I received; it was like a basket with ceramic plates stacked on top of each other¡­ ¡®I hope the food is not squished together¡¯ I hopingly murmured.


    I set the food on the table. I noticed Aizen was already up and did not wake anyone. I did not feel like waking anyone either, not after the weird dream at least. Fenri did not seem hungry. Aizen on the other hand, curiously looked at the basket and decided to see what was inside. She saw the pilled plates, her face also turned grim. However, the harmonious scent coming from the basket quickly changed her mind and removed the plate that was on top of everything. There was another plate, and another one, and another¡­ After four plates and finding four spoons on the last plate. There was something that looked like a small iron pot with a myriad of vegetables. I recognized some carrot and zucchini, I did not recognize anything else. I also noticed a ladle. I don¡¯t know what material it was made out of, but it had a nice silvery glint to it.


    ¡°Hmhm.¡± I noticed some fumbling coming from the beds and some fabric rustling. I kept hearing more rustling from the beds; the girls were waking up from the food smell; Aizen did not care and just started serving herself, seeing her I just sighed.


    ¡°Yami is mean.¡± Cecil quietly told Ari; she nodded.


    ¡°Um, what did I do?¡± I quietly asked. However, they just ignored me and sat on the table. Leaving me standing. I ended up sitting as well. I served the girls seeing they couldn¡¯t quite do it themselves since they weren¡¯t tall enough.


    ¡°Thanks.¡± Cecil silently said as she started eating. I barely managed to hear it. I wondered what she was thinking about. Ari started eating as well.


    I stared at my empty plate and served myself, from what I could tell there were only vegetables, Aizen seemed to be enjoying it, seeing her gaze was just looking at the pot like a predator after she had finished her plate. Noticing this, I decided to start eating. They were vegetables; good vegetables. Letting juices spread through my mouth every time I chewed.


    We finished breakfast, not knowing what to do we just left it there and left the room.


    ¡°Is it fine to not clean anything?¡± Cecil suddenly asked, however, I just shrugged, everyone shrugged. She did not say anything after that. We continued walking down the entirely wooden hallway. I still felt tiny, like if I was in an environment for giants. We arrived at the counter without saying much. The thing was standing there, looking at the same spot as yesterday. I put the key on the counter and he just took it with one hand and did not say anything. Like that, we left and I led the group towards the point where the merchant was.


    ¡®What a weird inn-keeper, looking at a wall until night time? What could he be doing? Isn¡¯t he a totem or something? I wonder if he has a title like: ¡®the immovable¡¯. It would be quite interesting if that was a thing. He did not even react to Fenri. Did he even see Fenri?¡¯ While I was thinking, I noticed the merchant wagon. He seemed somewhat uneasy; biting his nails and slightly trembling for some reason, as soon as he saw us his face became clear and he practically stopped shaking. When we were in front of him, he just looked at all of us and gave me a cold gaze.


    ¡°You are late.¡±


    ¡°We never set a time.¡± Aizen nonchalantly chimed in. The merchant froze for a second and placed his hand on his chin as he was thinking something, however, he ended up sighing. And began speaking again.


    ¡°That is true, we will be leaving now. Hopefully, we can reach the capital today, I am glad it wasn¡¯t a long trip. I have lost way too much already.¡± I could clearly hear his melancholy. After he finished speaking he just led us to the back of the wagon like last time.


    We boarded the wagon without saying much and it started moving.


    I wonder what kind of place the capital is like? It must be amazing, considering it¡¯s the largest city and most important one, otherwise it wouldn¡¯t be named capital. At least I know that much. I want to see if there are any new alloys or metals in general. Or like she called them: ¡®rocks¡¯. I will throw her one of those rocks if she calls them like that again¡­ She did seem quite interested in the academy. I wonder what the magic and combat academies encompass. I mean, sure they encompass what they say. But how far? Does magic academy take summoners into account because they use mana to summon? Hmm¡­


    Also, I wonder why people look at Fenri with fear sometimes? Sure his presence is intimidating when he tries to. But, looking at him just laying on the ground in front of me is not scary at all. I mean he is just a wolf, right? Or was it a monster wolf? They look the same anyways, wait. Are there normal wolves in this world? Another question¡­ I need too many answers for too many questions¡­ Sigh.


    Now thinking about it, what kind of religion does the church worship? I mean, it seems pretty generic at first with the whole discrimination against beastkin, but. Why only beastkin? At least that¡¯s what it looks like to me, then again the thought of purifying a beastkin sounds terrifying. I shudder just thinking about it. If something were to happen to me and Fenri nor Aizen could help me. I certainly need some type of weapon, I did make that dagger¡­ Wait¡­ Where is the dagger? Whatever, it doesn¡¯t matter. I still need something, a dagger would be convenient and simple. Also, I think they are easy to use? I mean, they are quite light, but they do have a short range.


    I looked in my inventory for daggers, I did not have any. ¡®Looks like I will need to make one?¡¯ I thought about it for a second, I normally would be enthusiastic about it. But now I have mixed feelings. ¡®Having everyone knowing me, is annoying, now I am a beastkin so I think it got worse. What do, what do? I guess I will make one if I get the chance.¡¯ After thinking, I arrived at a reasonable conclusion.


    ¡°Yami?¡± Ari called out for me while tilting her head. I could only assume she was wondering about my random mutters and fixedly staring at the ground for quite some time.


    ¡°Ah, sorry. I was thinking I needed a weapon.¡± I said with a wry smile while scratching my neck. This made Ari even more confused and asked.


    ¡°A weapon? Why would you need one?¡±


    ¡°To protect myself.¡±


    I nonchalantly answered Ari¡¯s confusion, however, she looked at me with piercing eyes instead.


    ¡°You are joking right?¡± ¡®how could this be a joke. Isn¡¯t it obvious? The lumberjack almost did something bad to me, it would be bad to let it happen again. Besides, I already reassured Aizen.


    ¡°No.¡± I dismissed Ari.


    I noticed she sighed and stopped caring after my insightful reply. I guess she failed to see why I needed a weapon, but that did not matter to me. Soon enough, Cecil seemed interested in something.


    ¡°So, why do you need a weapon?¡±


    ¡°I already answered that.¡± What¡¯s the point of her question?


    ¡°Well, why would you need protection if you already have Fenri?¡±


    She casually said while petting him. We were sitting in a little circle with Fenri at the center. Aizen seemed to have dozed off. After I took a quick look around, I assumed it was fine to say it. Since it didn¡¯t matter if Fenri heard me, I assumed he already knew anyway.


    ¡°Well, if Fenri happens to be away, and I need to fight. It would be better than having nothing.¡±


    Cecil, hearing my casual reply seemed to agree with those thoughts and nodded.


    I guess, I can continue thinking now? Well, let¡¯s see¡­ The ¡®continent¡¯ is weirdly shaped and I think it connects to another bigger continent, based on what I heard from the inn lady it seemed that most of this ¡®continent¡¯ was human land. With very few members of other races, and apparently to leave the continent I would need to go through the holy city of, of... I already forgot the name... Doesn¡¯t that sound quite extreme? Well, I guess I should worry about it when we go there? If we need to even go there? I can¡¯t think of many reasons to go. Also, despite everything being so religious. I don¡¯t recall ever seeing a church? Huh¡­


    ¡°Ari, why haven¡¯t we seen a temple or something from the church?¡± Might as well ask her.


    ¡°...¡± she seemed somewhat stiff hearing me but started speaking.


    ¡°Do you want to visit the church?¡±  Hearing her, I just shook my head. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw me deny it.


    ¡°Well, one of the major reasons as to why we haven¡¯t seen any cathedral of sorts, it''s because small towns like the previous two ones, do not have them. They cannot fit them. The church just seems to just enjoy building big buildings to be able to, ''shelter the divinity''. Or whatever that man meant.¡± It sounded perfectly reasonable, but there was something wrong.


    ¡°That man?¡± I curiously asked. I noticed Ari froze yet again.


    ¡°I¡¯d rather not talk about it,¡± she dejectedly said. I did not want to keep prying, considering that one time when she seemed to want to talk about herself I told her not to if she did not feel comfortable so...


    ¡°Yami, why did you want to know about the church, you did not show much interest in it before.¡± She looked at me while tilting her head.


    ¡°Well, I was just thinking. ¡®What if we wanted to leave the continent,¡¯¡± I casually informed her.


    ¡°Ah¡­ right.¡±


    Looking at shadow casting over her face, I decided to just stop thinking about it and not mention it.


    I wonder, what could make her give that sort of reaction? She doesn¡¯t seem very religious anyway.

 (Chpt. 33) Doubts.

    Alice.


    I looked outside the carriage to see what time it was, the sun was setting, however, the wagon showed no signs of slowing down. Yami informed us that the merchant was actually desperate to reach the capital. Therefore he would ''pull an all-nighter¡¯ I did not know what she meant, but I assumed he would stay driving all night. Which isn¡¯t all that uncommon when things are urgent.


    Yami proceeded to call Fenri over and whispered something in his ear. Fenri ended up giving a slight nod and afterwards, he received a lovable pat messing up his head fur. I wanted to do the same.


    ¡°Fenri,¡± I called over to him while gesturing with my hand. He slowly but carelessly approached me, ending up in front of me. I did not think much of it, but how would I snuggle him? After thinking for a nonexistent amount of time I decided to hug him.


    ¡°Woof.¡± He gave me a sweet bark, I guess he enjoyed the hug from earlier today as well. He was just so soft and he wasn¡¯t too warm nor too cold. Overall, I would say it was the most comfortable pillow I have ever used in my life. Sadly, even Fenri got tired of my hugging after a while and moved, albeit reluctantly. I think he actually did not get tired.


    Fenri went towards Yami and just laid on the floor acting as a pillow. ¡®So that¡¯s how it was.¡¯ I muttered and looked outside from the back again, I could only see the silvery moonlight entering the wagon. I could hear the rustling of the grass and the ever so slightly and creaking wood of the wagon. Before I knew, Yami was gesturing me to come towards her.


    As soon as I arrived next to her, she just hugged me and dozed off. ¡®Am I a pillow or something? Well¡­ If that¡¯s the case... I don¡¯t mind being a pillow.¡¯ With those thoughts, I hugged her back as always.


    I mean, getting constantly hugged is not annoying and it certainly cheers me up after ¡®that¡¯ happened. However, despite all of the things I have found out about Yami, I can¡¯t help but think she is still a complete mystery. I do remember Aizen calling her Kuro, but that makes no sense. It¡¯s her family name AND a male name. Also, she is the disciple of that person, I don¡¯t get it at all¡­


    Aizen is pretty mysterious herself, but I feel like even if she were to tell me basically everything, I would still be confused. Yami seems to really be into rocks? I did manage to pick up the conversation earlier, although it was quite awkward... and, I did not understand a lot of the contents. Aizen is going to look into the academy? I wonder how that will turn out¡­ A dragon going into a magic academy¡­ Well, I hope nothing happens that makes us need to leave the capital.


    Now thinking about it, why was Yami interested in the church? I mean I don¡¯t mind telling her, but it was such a sudden thing that it made me nervous. Especially that place. The very thought of it just makes me shiver. I seriously wouldn¡¯t mind telling Yami at all, but she did not seem to want me to tell her unless I was completely sure. I still have my doubts, especially now that she seems a slightly bit more conscious about her beastkin features.


    No matter how I look at the church, it doesn¡¯t make sense. Absolute devotion to God is completely logical, but... When you go deeper, they are not worshiping God, I understand their logic, but it is just weird. But... why justify all of the crusades and everything that I was told regarding its history. Just for items? What can a high tier item do that makes them so special? Yami¡¯s rings are incredibly special, but I cannot see an item going further than that.


    The church is flawed, and I want to see it disappear. But, I can¡¯t help but feel like a hypocrite thinking about it. I could probably go on a rant about everything that is wrong with just the church but in reality, I think the entire world being based around levels and a weird voice of god that resounds in your head is weird. Then again, the first time I heard that voice was¡­ I shouldn¡¯t think about it.


    I shook my head with my last thought. Hitting Fenri¡¯s belly in the process.


    ¡°Sorry.¡± I murmured to him.


    I can¡¯t believe I accidentally hit Fenri. I hope he knows how truly sorry I am. I just have too many things in mind.  Yami and Aizen are weird even though I like them, and they are better people than almost every person I have met. I still can¡¯t help but worry about what is about to come. Yami is the disciple of that person, what if the word goes out? What if the church comes from hearing about her? What if they find out she is a beastkin? Too many things I need to worry about, yet I am powerless.


    I hope we can just live in the capital or something. That would certainly be nice. I wonder¡­ Yami did say something along the lines of not knowing where she would be, and she still doesn¡¯t seem to have a particular destination in mind. I wonder if we could live in the capital? That would be nice. Getting captured and enslaved is bad, but I think my situation was just misfortune.


    Now thinking about it, why did Cecil get captured? She did mention it having to do with being a mage. But just thinking about it, I can¡¯t think of any particular reason to why would anyone capture you for just that. I do understand Mages are in high demand in the monster killing department. But well, Cecil seems to be younger than me, her being a good enough level for a mage would be impossible. At least that¡¯s what I think, she did not even seem to have a class. At least she said she wasn¡¯t a mage. Well no use thinking much about it, for all I know they just want weak mages for them to act as servants. Elemental magic is a convenient skill to have just to live. Creating fire, water to drink, wind to dry your clothes. Overall, I wish I had those attributes. Instead, I am stuck with [Light]... Well, not like I can complain too much. One is born with their attribute, unlike classes.


    Classes¡­ I remembered now, I have been too busy thinking about Yami and Aizen. But what about me? It¡¯s not like I have nothing to worry about. Ah, well. It should be fine, Aizen and Yami don¡¯t seem particularly worried about their issues. So I guess I should worry less about mine.


    But, well no use in worrying about it, everyone else is now sleeping. I guess I should sleep as well, I kind of wonder how does Aizen manage to sleep whenever she feels like it? Is it a special dragon skill or something? I feel jealous now. I am really trying to sleep but I am just having random thoughts. and I can¡¯t do anything about it. How frustrating! I wonder if other people suffer from the same thing? Aizen certainly doesn¡¯t seem like it, and Yami doesn¡¯t either¡­


    I decided to slightly lift my head to look for Cecil. ¡®How weird,¡¯ I murmured. I could not see her. Before I noticed she was between me and Yami. She was soundlessly asleep.


    I guess she doesn¡¯t have the issue either...


    Before I knew it I fell asleep.


    * * *


    ¡®I wonder what she was thinking about?¡¯ I muttered as I saw Ari finally fall asleep.


    I shouldn¡¯t have slept earlier¡­ I kind of regret it now, not being able to fall asleep¡­ I am technically a dragon, no? I think? I don¡¯t get it, I should be able to sleep for days on end¡­ Wait¡­ Am I closer to a human than a dragon? That would certainly explain how uncomfortable it feels to curl into a ball¡­ Well, not like I will stop doing it.


    One day without sleep wouldn¡¯t be bad. If I am human now, I should be able to do it. At least every single person that tried to kill me, was able to do it. I should be fine. Sleep is not necessary anyway. I only did it because it was better than looking at a rocky wall.


    With those thoughts in mind, I stood up and just looked outside the wagon, looking at the forest and ever-changing landscape that we were leaving behind. The breeze was cool and left a nice sensation on the skin. I just kept observing the outside.


    I never really bothered with the world. But, I think it is a pity I missed out on views like these ones. The only view I ever had was the one in my cave. That somehow changed during that period of time. I still remember leaving my cave and finding myself in an entirely different place. I don¡¯t know if this is a new world or just a different place. I have no way to check such things anymore.


    But I wonder¡­ Before, there were multiple strong warriors, rather. People that I would consider having reached the limit. Yet there have been no individuals like that since I left the cave. The hero came close, seeing he could stop my careless physical attacks. But, if he had reached the limit, Ruin spell shouldn¡¯t have affected him. Weird. Funny how someone like me, considered the smartest and wisest, no longer knows anything about this world. It shares similarities, but I haven¡¯t recognized any place we have went to, how odd¡­ Well, I am no longer the [Legendary Dragon], at least I can leave those things behind and move forward.


    Wait¡­ Now thinking about it, why do I still have the title of [Legendary Dragon] I am not even a dragon anymore? Can you lose titles? I am pretty sure you can. So, why do I still have it? Am I still considered the same? As much as I hate to admit it. I don¡¯t understand this world. It makes no sense. But regardless if I am still a dragon or not. I have things I did not have before, and I have people I want to protect now.

 (Chpt. 34) The capital.

    Alice.


    I slowly opened my eyes and moved my body up-right. I looked towards the coachman sit. The merchant was slouched but still driving, I noticed Cecil and Ari next to one another laying on top of Fenri. However, I did not see Aizen anywhere.


    ¡®I wonder where she could be.¡¯ After some mutter, I finally found her. She was looking outside the wagon near the back. However, how weird. She was looking at it with dead-fish eyes, it made me wonder if she actually had rest or stayed up watching outside for whatever reason. I noticed the sun had just risen up. I approached her to see if something was wrong.


    ¡°Aizen?¡±


    However, she just kept looking outside.


    ¡°Aizen.¡±


    ¡®What¡¯s with her? All she is doing is looking outside, her eyes are not even focused. Hmm let¡¯s see, I will move my hand past her eyes to see if she answers¡­¡¯ After thinking and swaying my hand in her line of sight, she did not answer.


    ¡°Aizen.¡±


    After a few seconds, her eyes finally lit-up.


    ¡°Eh?¡±


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± I asked out of genuine concern.


    ¡°Ah, yes. I am fine, perfectly fine.¡±


    Her firm reply did not convince me at all, but it couldn¡¯t be helped.


    I wonder why she stayed up all night? There is no other reason for her attentiveness or rather, lack thereof. I wonder what I could do? Smacking her would probably not do anything at all for me, she is probably hungry, but meat wouldn¡¯t do it. Hmm, I wonder. Wait¡­ I just remembered something, we have apples. I remember some people saying apples were a healthy alternative to coffee, I don¡¯t really know what coffee is exactly. BUT, I do know that it gave you energy.


    With those thoughts in mind, I took an apple out of my inventory and gave it to Aizen. Well rather than give it to her, I had to grab her hand and make her grip it. And by that, I mean forcing her to grip it until she realized what was going on. She was fairly confused but ended up eating the apple without saying anything. She did not seem to improve, but it would take some time for the apple to actually have an effect. In the meantime, I decided to wake Ari and Cecil up by gently moving them side to side. This also caused Fenri to wake up. He looked somewhat confused.


    ¡°Yawn, Morning Yami,¡± Ari yawningly greeted me while rubbing her eye.


    ¡°Morning.¡± Cecil was slightly quieter as she rubbed her eyes.


    ¡°Ah, morning. Here, breakfast.¡± I said as I handed them apples.


    I also gave Fenri a few apples, Cecil did not notice what I was doing.


    I think having an apple for breakfast would be decent. Better than an apple with dried meat at least. Pretty weird how I see the combination as atrocious, yet the apple alone is perfectly fine. I noticed that Cecil and Yami were looking at their hands with grim faces.


    ¡°Thanks for the food...¡± Cecil unenthusiastically thanked me, Ari did not seem to want it, but that was outside my control.


    Shrugging off the clearly disappointed girls, I started eating the apple, I did not taste it much before due to the saltiness of the dried meat, however. It was sweet and crunchy, clearly surpassing my expectations, it was no inn food. But, it could certainly work as a light breakfast.


    ¡®Come to think of it. Has the merchant eaten anything?¡¯ With those worries in mind, I decided to approach the coachman sit.


    ¡°Do, you, need, something?¡± He kept making brief pauses with baggy eyes. I did not say anything and just gave him an apple.


    ¡°Thank, you.¡±


    After he thanked me,  I looked at the horses, they looked perfectly fine. I did not really question the idea of having animals run all night. But I remembered living beings need rest. Rather, I was reminded by the sight of Aizen. Huh... Well, I guess I could always ask Ari when it comes to common knowledge.


    I came back to the girls who had finished eating the apples and were now standing up. I finished my own apple, and looked at it, wondering how to dispose of the leftovers. I do remember leaving them at the ground, shouldn¡¯t it be fine to throw them outside the carriage? They are organic and stuff, probably¡­ Should be fine, plastic isn¡¯t a thing anyways. Before I could do anything I noticed Ari and Cecil doing what I just thought. I followed by also throwing the apple core outside the carriage.


    I realized, Cecil was looking at me.


    ¡°Yami, where did you get the apples from?¡± She confusedly asked I do not blame her. After all, I did take the apples out of nowhere. Well, not like it was relevant. Food is food, or am I wrong?


    ¡°Does it matter?¡± I asked her back, however, to my surprise she just nodded.


    ¡°Ah, Cecil. You see, Yami went out of the wagon when she saw an apple tree before she woke us up.¡± Ari interrupted before I could answer. She gave me a wink, I assume the intervention was for me to not tell her about the fact that I had a hypothetical [item-bag].


    Are they really that rare here? I mean it is just a [Flawless] item¡­ Oh, right¡­ Trash items are considered good here. What a pain¡­ I have a feeling I could break the economy if I were to actually try to make an okay item. Rather, it could probably do something worse than breaking the economy. How frustrating having to think about the stuff I do¡­ I did make that dagger, and I think I left it there? I wonder what happened to it. Well, not like I can go back to try to obtain my possession. Wait, is it even mine? I did use that super impure iron from that forge. Ah, well. No use worrying about something I no longer have.


    ¡°So that¡¯s how it was.¡± Cecil accepted Ari¡¯s explanation without much hassle. I decided to look outside out of curiosity, there was no tree to be found, only tall-grass plains. Aizen seemed to be doing a little bit better, at least she did not seem like a doll anymore. She was muttering a lot of things, I think she just had too much stuff to think about, stuff I didn¡¯t really understand.


    Cecil took a step forward towards me.


    ¡°Umm. Yami, do you have more apples?¡± She asked with pleading eyes, I noticed Ari was frantically shaking her head behind her. I guess the [Item-bag] was something serious.


    ¡°No, I gave our last one to the merchant.¡±


    ¡°I see... ¡°


    After giving her a reply she sat down, I also did the same but sat in front of her. Ari walked around a bit just to stretch herself and after doing that, she also took a seat. We ended up sitting in a triangle formation.


    I guess being strong doesn¡¯t correlate to items, which is kind of odd.  At least in the game items were so important that a level 120 without items could be outclassed by a level 90 with items. The difference margin was really high. So, I guess that''s why items are so valuable in this world. I wonder what people value most here? I mean I did not really understand actual real life, but I do remember hearing a player being weird and saying ¡®What is the meaning of life?¡¯ Over and over again, I personally just gave it my own answer, but I wonder what other people think. Ah well, no use worrying about it.


    ¡°Hey, umm. Yami. I have a question.¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°I have been wondering this for a long time, seeing I finally meet an adventurer like you. I wanted to ask. Is life just about becoming strong?¡± Quite the weird question.


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± I confusedly asked.


    ¡°Well, is life just about acquiring a class and then dying?¡±


    She looked somewhat nervous, Ari just looked at me wondering what kind of hazardous reply I would throw at her. I assumed she thought I would say something random. However, I had reached the meaning of life question a long time ago.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know if this is the reply you are looking for. But, I don¡¯t think life has a meaning to it, just do whatever you want with it. Give it your own meaning if you desire it, just live if you desire it.¡±


    After my nonchalant answer, I noticed Cecil was thinking and Ari had a wide-open mouth from my reply. ¡®Was it really that surprising? It¡¯s really not that hard you know.¡¯ I muttered as if answering to Ari¡¯s reaction, after doing that I noticed Cecil nodded and looked at me with unmoving eyes.


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    For some reason, my simple reply seemed to satisfy her. I noticed she went back to thinking and nodded again.


    ¡°Can I share some of my experiences?¡±


    ¡°Sure.¡±


    ¡°Nn.¡±


    I gave her a pretty casual reply and Ari just nodded, I noticed Cecil relaxed her shoulders and had a faint smile with somewhat flushed cheeks. However, before she started talking her face looked grim.


    ¡°Well, the reason for my question is because. As a noble, I am just expected to follow everything, etiquette, studies, even strength. There is nothing interesting, my whole life I have been trying to please my father. However, he just never seems happy¡­¡± After giving us a wry smile, she continued. ¡°That is why I want to thank you, Yami. I think I will do whatever I want now.¡± This time she actually gave me a complete smile.


    ¡°That¡¯s great, I am happy for you.¡± I just said something cheesy not knowing what to say. I looked at Ari for her reply, but she seemed to be thinking about something with a somewhat grim face. I looked back at Cecil who now had flushed cheeks.


    ¡°C--¡±


    ¡°Cecil, I think your objectives are great, however, this is my advice. Prepare for the worst, life can be great and awful. Just be sure of what to expect.¡± Ari¡¯s cold advice interrupted what I was about to say, I noticed she did not look particularly happy. But I wonder what could make her say that? I don¡¯t know¡­ It just seems like I am looking at night and day between these two girls. One is naive and the other one is smart.


    ¡°...Nn.¡± Cecil slowly nodded from Ari¡¯s seriousness.


    ¡°Ari and K-Yami did say something important. If something bad happens, move forward, if something good happens, cherish those moments.¡±


    I noticed Aizen was finally awake and was slowly walking towards us. I noticed Cecil looked happier hearing Aizen¡¯s realistic advice. Which I thought is fine. Although I wonder if Cecil would be able to move forward from certain things. Aizen moved forward from her past self, and I had to move forward from Eli¡¯s disappearance¡­ However, I wonder if Cecil will be able to? Well, I hope our advice helped her at least.


    ¡°Girls! I can see the capital now.¡± We heard the not so dead merchant enthusiastically inform us.


    The capital huh? I wonder how big it is. Will it be better than the one on the game? I want to see something big and imposing. I don¡¯t know¡­ Something like that would certainly be nice.


    As I was thinking, the wagon accelerated; increasing the rattle. It started hurting my butt, but I could not do much about it. I noticed the merchant¡¯s cargo started ever so slightly shaking, I could hear metallic sounds coming from it. ¡®Could it be? No there is no way a random merchant is transporting metals¡­ It must be something else, like¡­ Utensils or something¡­ Yeah... ¡® I calmed myself down with an illogical explanation, although it would certainly explain why the merchant had to leave the rest of the boxes behind. The wagon was already rattling a lot. I assume moving more boxes inside would damage the wagon¡¯s axels to some extent.


    After a minute or two, the carriage stopped, we decided to get out of the wagon to stretch. I noticed a shadow closing in behind me, it was the merchant. I noticed he was scratching his cheek.


    ¡°Well, here we are, haha¡­ Thank you for escorting me through the... peculiar occurrences.¡±


    I realized he was still nervous and just worried about what was to come for him, but that was none of my business. There was a single thing that bothered me, I did not want to ¡°fail¡± the request.


    ¡°So, about the adventurers guild and completion?¡± I asked the merchant.


    ¡°Ah, right... ¡° he started fumbling around his pockets. ¡°Here, take this.¡± He handed me something that looked like a small scroll, I just took it and placed it inside my cloak (inventory). His face somewhat twisted from seeing his precious scroll being mindlessly tossed into my cloak.


    ¡°Just take that to the adventurers guild and that would complete the request,¡± he bowed. ¡°I am sorry for having to kick you out of the wagon, but going into the capital with three girls inside my wagon could get me arrested,¡± he said as his cheeks turned red. So that¡¯s how it was, well that¡¯s understandable.


    ¡°Ah, I see¡­ Well, we are leaving then,¡± I informed the merchant as I gestured everyone else to follow me. He just stood there not knowing what to say or do until he stiffened and went back to the wagon.


    I hadn¡¯t paid attention to the outside aside from the dirt road, the grass was no longer twice as tall as me, it was well trimmed and seemed to be taken care of regularly. I decided to face in the direction of the carriage. I saw something imposing. It was massive; the pale-white walls were easily ten times the size of Mirl¡¯s, the gate had the width of six wagons accompanied by a bridge that matched the walls. A moat that was full of pristine and clear water.


    At that moment I understood why Ari seemed unimpressed by the Mirl¡¯s plaza, the bridge width alone was half the width of Mirl¡¯s. It really wasn¡¯t impressing when you compare it to the apex of human engineering. Well, I could only assume it was that way, seeing it was the first time I saw such a big place. The capital in the game was slightly different, while it did share the pale-white stone it also had a lot of gold accents everywhere. I mean everywhere.


    I noticed the wagon had left us a while ago and everyone was staring at me. Well, it was understandable considering I looked at the entire place without blinking for a good twenty seconds.


    ¡°Yami?¡±


    ¡°Ah, yes I am coming.¡±


    Before I realized it, everyone in our group was walking on the side of the bridge towards a door built into the gate itself. There were some people making a line because of guard security checks or what-not, seeing the gate was heavily guarded. We idly waited as the line moved with us in it.


    ¡°Eh?!¡±


    I heard a surprised gritty voice somewhere, I looked towards the distance and it was a white-haired butler, he was looking at our group fixedly before he noticed my gaze and then broke into a sprint.


    ¡°Weird,¡± I muttered.

 (Side S. 7) Milady.

    Even though my lord told me to scan the area¡­ I don¡¯t see the point¡­ I understand he is worried about milady, I am as well. But, just telling me to scan the area while he forms an elite search party? It¡¯s not like she is going to be anywhere near, it has been a few days after all. I think he is just being too hopeful, well I am almost done here anyway. I just need to check the gate, but it¡¯s not like she will show up out of nowhere.


    I leisurely walked towards the main gates of the capital, it was my last task for the day so there was no need to rush. Some people looked curiously at the wandering butler but I kept my composure, it was what I was trained for. After some more walking, I was as close to the gate as I could get, guards would do something if I got too close. The part of the gate I was on was for entrance only.


    My gaze started wandering around all of the people that were in line, I could not see them too well due to the metal grid of the gate.


    ¡®It¡¯s useless, there is no point. No matter who I look at, they all seem like merchants or adventurers¡¯ I looked around some more without hope. Until my gaze fixed on a certain group. ''What¡¯s with that group? White hair? Silver hair? Never seen such exotic hair colors, and two smaller girls with golden hair¡­ Wait, could it be?¡¯ I fixedly looking at them.


    ¡°Eh?!¡± I let out a surprised voice as I pasted my gaze on this peculiar girl, wearing luxurious clothes, golden hair and golden eyes. There was no doubt about it it was milady. However, before I could continue my thoughts I noticed the white-haired girl was staring me down, it felt like she was looking into my very soul; panicked. I escaped. I had to report.


    How was this possible? Milady is back? No, this makes no sense. Was that girl milady? I was too far to actually tell, but her height seemed to match. And her hair was as pristine and silky as milady. There was no other way.


    I increased my speed as I frantically ran towards the mansion, passing by civilians and some carriages. It did not take long for me to exit the plaza as I was heading northeast to the wealthier district. All of the other districts were of middle and lower classes. I was heading towards the mansion to report. I passed by the academy without batting an eye, I was running to the limits of my lowly level 20 status. I arrived at the mansion gate panting.


    ¡°To believe despite being a scout-- I couldn¡¯t get here faster-- haha¡­¡± I lifelessly muttered as I was recovering my breath. The guard was looking at me without saying anything, I noticed a drop of sweat was running down the side of his head and dropped to the ground.


    ¡°Is there something wrong Mr. Gerard?¡± the armored guard worriedly asked while leaving his spear on standby. He extended his hand to help me out; I grabbed onto it.


    ¡°T-Thanks.¡± I barely managed to muster after somewhat recovering from the hellish sprint, but I was not done yet. I still had to report. I thanked the guard and sprinted inside the mansion in a hurry, I did not worry about messing the carpet on the floor. This was something more important. I ran upstairs towards the studio. The other butlers and maids looked at me with worried faces. I was drenched in sweat but this was still more important.


    Despite my rapidly dropping stamina, I was on the final stretch, I only had to reach the two-black wooden doors. I sprinted with the last of the stamina I could muster and slammed the doors.


    ¡°Lord Firil!¡± I rudely exclaimed as soon as I rampaged into the room.


    ¡°W-What?!¡± He was recovering from the shock of having his doors suddenly slammed. He did not reprimand me seeing I was panting and bathed in my own bodily fluids. I took two-quick breaths, but that wasn¡¯t enough to completely calm my breath and heart down. However, that didn¡¯t matter.


    ¡°My lord¡­ I-I have come to report¡­ I-- was by the gates and I think I saw milady!¡± I barely managed to muster those words through my ragged breath. I noticed my lord had his eyes wide-open and jolted from his seat. He grabbed the bell on his desk and frantically shook it with vigor, a vigor that I had never seen before coming from him. Soon enough I heard rushing footsteps towards here and another butler showed up.


    ¡°Y-Yes my lord?!¡±


    ¡°Get my daughter back! She was seen at the city gates. Do anything in my power! And reprimand those people that took her!¡± he commanded a fuming red-face. He was tightly clenching his fist, I could tell. This mattered to my lord more than anything else that had happened before. Nobles valued etiquette, however that did not matter to him at this moment. For some reason, he did not command me even though I was the head butler. I could only assume it was because he was used to having reports made by other people and I was the one to jolt into his room instead... Well, it did not matter who got the order as long as milady is safe.


    ¡°At your orders!¡± the butler hurriedly bowed and left the room in a rush and closed the doors behind me, making a sound resonate throughout the whole room.


    I kept gasping for air and breathing slowly. Steadily; my heart calmed down and my breathing was returning to normal. As soon as I could I straightened myself; I was showing disgraceful behaviour. I was his butler, nothing else, nothing more.  I heard a breath of relief from across the room.


    ¡°Gerard¡­ Did you really see her?¡±


    ¡°Y-Yes, there was no doubt about it. However, there was something weird. She seemed to be there willingly,¡± he lifted his eyebrow hearing this.


    ¡°Willingly?¡±


    ¡°Yes, willingly. She seemed to be chatting with three more girls,¡± I informed my lord. It was important information, I don¡¯t know what happened but I truly doubt those girls captured her and planned to sell her or do whatever they were going to do with her.


    ¡°I see,¡± he sighed. ¡°Gerard, make sure they only capture those girls then.¡± he casually gave me an order. Rather, a request. I bowed and left the room. As soon as I was outside I noticed the butler standing there.


    ¡°Gerard, what do I do?!¡± Ah, right. I was the head butler. Special orders like these could not be fulfilled by normal butlers. I was more of his right hand than an actual butler. But a butler nonetheless. I grabbed his shoulder.


    ¡°I will take care of this.¡± Hearing my words the butler¡¯s shoulders loosened and he quickly bowed.


    ¡°Thank you very much!¡± he left in a hurry after finishing his words.


    After that, I went downstairs and went to the guards. Seeing I did not have much time I just gathered six guards from around the mansion. While the defenses were as low as ever, I think my lord would have preferred this over taking the time to go for more knights. Even though I had gathered six guards they just looked at me. Holding their spears on standby.


    ¡°Umm, Gerard why are we all here?¡± the head knight James questioned. We were in front of the mansion. This is where I as the head butler had to take control.


    ¡°James, as you know milady was¡­ Captured,¡± I bitterly said. I noticed a lot of the knights gritted their teeth hearing those words. While milady was a girl of few words, she was loved by everyone across the mansion, however, she seemed to be rather depressed lately so we had been hesitant to approach her.


    ¡°Well, not anymore. We are going to get milady today. I spotted her today at the gates. This is an order from Firil.¡±


    ¡°¡±¡±Wooo!¡±¡±¡± their energy rose as they let out pumped shouts. While it was disgraceful to use my lord¡¯s name without his presence it was for the better. The reason to why the guards did not doubt my words was my lord¡¯s name. Using his name in his absence to lie was¡­ A death penalty to put it simply, I had their absolute trust.


    We marched towards the gates. The armor was more of an obstacle for the knights under the scorching sun. They were heavily sweating however, that did not shake their unwavering eyes nor their conviction to fulfill the order at hand. People looked at us, but that did not matter either.


    ¡°Wait!¡± A kingdom guard ran into our way, we had no time to waste with him. He was an obstacle and in our way. Despite the rather dire situation, we could not forcefully move him aside; all of us knew better. I had something to deal with this kind of situation. No matter how many rules that I had set for myself, I break, I will bring milady back. I took out the silver medallion from inside my bosom. His eyes grew wide.


    ¡°T-That¡¯s the-the Cereslin¡¯s family--¡±


    ¡°Move,¡± I commanded the guard. He moved aside and let us pass. He was still looking at us, that did not matter, it was better than seeing him freak out for minutes wasting our time.


    I also realized that all of the civilians that were ignoring us now had their eyes pasted on us. Every single human being on the plaza was now looking at us due to the knight¡¯s reaction; we continued marching towards the gates. ¡®Sigh, I want to get milady back but this would go faster if people stopped getting in our way,¡¯ I muttered as I rubbed my face with my glove in frustration.


    Soon enough even the gate guards took notice of us, I noticed one of them was talking to the white-haired girl. A commotion was rising on the streets.


    ¡°Stop!¡± A gate guard halted our process. This time we were not as impatient because we could see milady. Or two miladies? Both of the girls looked almost the same, well. We would figure out eventually. I flashed the medallion again, which yet again, made the guard¡¯s eyes shake. However, this guard was much more experienced. He coughed and moved aside. I noticed the girls were entering the plaza.


    ¡°Wait!¡± I got in their way. The six guards followed behind me. I noticed the silver-haired girl narrowed her eyes and looked at us, her presence was¡­ Intimidating. It was the first time I had experienced such a thing. I started shaking and the guards behind me instantly pointed their spears.


    ¡°Umm,¡± The white-haired girl awkwardly broke the tension between both parties. I froze for a second not believing her casual and carefree behaviour while having weapons pointed at her. I also noticed there was a wolf casually wagging his tail next to her. For some reason, despite it being clearly visible I did not notice him at all.


    As the white-haired girl was about to speak.


    ¡°Gerard?¡± I looked at the source of the voice, it was milady wearing a sailor uniform. Her hair was incredibly messed up and seemed to be forcefully cut. She came towards me without any of the other girls doing anything about it. I knelt down to receive her.


    ¡°Milady, I am glad you are fine.¡± I was truly relieved.


    ¡°Umm, I am sorry Gerard, it was all my fault,¡± she dejectedly said as she closed in to hug me. I hugged her back, however, the more I looked at her hair the more it bothered me. What could have caused such a thing? I doubt it was the girls that were in front of me, but to be sure I needed to know.


    ¡°Did they do something to you?¡± I quietly whispered to her ear.


    ¡°Umm¡­" she started thinking and her eyes brightened. "I learned mana perception and manipulation with them!¡± she joyously informed me. They were glorious news, I felt my heart pounding in my chest from excitement.


    "That is marvelous milady. If you don''t mind me asking¡ªHow did they teach you?" I softly asked. The guards were getting relaxed and lowered the spears. The atmosphere was clearing up. Milady separated herself and looked at me with sparkling eyes. As she opened her mouth she began thinking about something.


    "Is there something wrong?" I asked out of concern. But she just shook her head.


    "I just don''t know how to begin," she dejectedly informed me.


    "Well, I am willing to listen to everything." Hearing me, she nodded and began talking.


    "It all started with me mentioning not knowing perception or manipulation," I nodded. "And then Aizen said if it was just that she could teach me." I did not know who Aizen was but it was certainly a good thing. "So, she grabbed my hands and I started feeling this strange energy that was roaming. After a few minutes, I managed to learn it. Isn''t it amazing?!" She excitedly ended her explanation.


    However, strange energy? That was mana, yes, but. Grabbing hands? The only way that could work would be by injecting mana into someone''s body, at least from the methods I know of. But, that''s... No. It''s just an impossible development. Who in their right mind would do that? It makes no sense. There must be some sort of mistake, I am not very knowledgable in this ambit, thankfully there is a way to clear my mind.


    "Milady, did you feel mana entering your body before you learned it?" It was the only way.


    "Well, yeah. Does it matter?" She asked with a puzzled expression. However, it did matter.


    "D-Did you really feel it? Entering your body?!" I was in a panic as I asked out of reassurance. Milady just slowly nodded in awkwardness.


    That was all I needed to know. These girls were dangerous... No, they were insane¡­


    I quickly stood up and forcefully dragged milady behind the guards. I nodded towards James the head knight. These individuals had to be captured. The guards stepped in front of milady and me; pointing their spears at the girls.

 (Author) I am sorry.

    Alice.


    I am sorry. I am sorry everyone. I will be completely transparent towards everyone. I have quite the¡ªvolatile and depressive personality¡ªa single mistake and everything seems to crumble. What do I mean by this? Well, for instance. I posted today''s chapter which was poorly written. I got plenty of constructive criticism, which is fair enough. However, it got me thinking. ''Was this what I wanted?'' Not really. I thought about it so much that I almost made one of these announcements to say the novel was going into a two-week hiatus.


    The hiatus would function to rewrite the last chapter and 6 chapters ahead, to fix any glaring issues as well as to avoid mistakes. But ultimately I thought I was overreacting (thankfully) so, the novel won''t be going in hiatus. That''s good, it keeps me from going overstressed from writing. Too much pressure.


    Anyways, that won''t be happening so, there is no need to worry about it. It brings us to the question of. What''s the point of this apology?


    Well, well, well. It is a rather hard one. First of all, I would like to apologize for writing such trash as last chapter, I don''t care if you guys thought it was good or not, it''s trash in my eyes. Anyways, I have already somewhat addressed the issue by fixing major issues with the chapter by adding a few paragraphs as well as rewriting a few, so hopefully, it won''t be as... bad. So, that''s done.


    What else do I want to mention? It plagues me to say this¡ªI will no longer adhere to a schedule of every two days. It''s stressful, and honestly, I don''t want to keep writing such atrocities such as last chapter. I will just post whenever I feel confident about it, rather than just posting something that is half-baked. It''s better for me, it''s better for everyone else. I can''t keep going to sleep at 3 am just for the sake of editing and writing chapters in sheer deadline pressure. So, it was needed change.


    I am surprised by the overwhelming support this novel has received. I am thankful to every single one of you that has decided to read through this, um... adventure of questionable quality. It brings a smile to my face seeing its consistent growth and support, which is one of the major reasons for this apology. If you guys care enough to give constructive criticism of telling to do better. I will care enough to correct and try to amend my mistakes/fix them. I am not one of those people that would say. ''Even if there was a single person reading, I would still try to do my best.'' I wouldn''t lie to myself like this, I know I wouldn''t. But you guys deserve better, that is why i am making this announcement. Thank you, everyone.


    ~Azriel.

 (Chpt. 35) Misunderstanding.

    Alice.


    Regarding the release schedule¡ªI will try to keep it the same as before. HOWEVER, and this is a big ''however''. If I don''t make it in time, I won''t try to upload an extra chapter, or just make up for the chapter. Too stressful, if I make it in time good, if I don''t?¡ªunfortunate. I just want to make this clear. Worst case scenario if I don''t abide by the schedule I would post once a week, and that would be zombie apocalypse levels of worst case. If something unexpected happens in which for whatever reason I cannot keep writing, then I shall just announce it.


    Wait what happened? Cecil suddenly called out for the butler, I think his name was Gerard. Gerard was surrounded by guards for whatever reason, I can only assume it was because Cecil was a noble. However, why are they pointing their weapons at us now?! We haven¡¯t really done anything¡­ The butler¡¯s shoulders suddenly tensed up when hearing Cecil and then he hurriedly put her away¡­ I don¡¯t understand what is happening.


    ¡°Emm, what did we do?¡± I decided to ask having no other option. I noticed the butler narrowed his eyes behind the guards and frowned.


    ¡°Why are you pretending like you did not do anything?! You psychopath!¡± What is with his sudden behaviour? Psycho?! What did I do? The guards kept their weapons up?¡ªunflinching.


    ¡°I really don¡¯t understand what you are talking about¡­¡± I quietly informed him.


    ¡°Teaching milady to learn mana manipulation and perception through those methods?! Are you insane?!¡± he snapped. However, what did he mean? I understand Aizen did something weird to her, but how does that make us psychopaths? Besides, it¡¯s not like she is suffering from side-effects-


    ¡°While I don¡¯t understand what you mean. she is fine, isn¡¯t she?¡± While the butler quietly nodded, he did so while clenching his fist and with a now red face.


    ¡°Enough with the excuses! Guards!¡± I started to feel their bloodlust cover the air making me somewhat tense. I had no real reason to be in this situation other than some kind of misunderstanding. The guards started closing in; pointing their spears like an unpenetrable wall. I noticed Cecil was petrified and then her eyes widened.


    ¡°Wait!¡± The guards froze on her high-pitched shout.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, milady?!¡± The butler was flustered as he struggled to keep Cecil under his embrace. She kept swinging her hands around trying to escape him, while he tried to calm her down. The guards also lost their composure seeing her altered state. After a few more seconds of her?¡ªstruggling she finally broke free and ran in front of the guards. Then she looked at the butler right in the eye.


    ¡°Why are you doing this?¡± The butler stayed silent as he grit his teeth from her questioning. It looked rather painful for him, well at least that¡¯s what it looked like to me. His face was turning red again and looked at us with a death-glare. However, he still had to answer her question.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it obvious!? Torturing someone like that is--¡± Along his sentence, it became apparent that Cecil did not understand until the butler had to stop.


    ¡°Eh?¡± she let out a confused voice. ¡°What do you mean by torture? Nothing like that happened¡­ Gerard, they are the adventurers that saved me! If it weren''t for them I wouldn''t be here...¡± Cecil while flustered?¡ªawkwardly cleared the misunderstanding. At this point, everyone in the plaza was looking at the huge drama that was happening. Our group received glares of questioning and pity?¡ªthe guards received reproachful ones¡­ The butler was frozen, not knowing what to say while hanging his mouth open. After blinking a few times, he straightened herself.


    ¡°James, step back¡­¡± he quietly commanded someone. One of the knights gave a signal and all of them moved aside, including him. The butler approached us with cold feet and a pale face. He had just done something quite extreme. Although I was happy about it not getting even more out of hand. I cannot fathom the idea of needing Aizen to freeze the situation because it got too extreme. I quickly took a glance at her; she was quietly looking. I looked back at the butler who was slowly approaching us until he was standing in front of Cecil.


    He gulped and scanned our group once again. He took a deep breath and looked at us again, and again¡­ He kept doing so for a few seconds while opening his mouth every so often but having to close it. Until he finally decided to say something.


    ¡°I-I¡­ I am deeply sorry¡­ about all of this¡­ I don¡¯t think I can make up for this misunderstanding,¡± he informed us with a raspy yet quiet and weak voice. He had finally calmed down but looked incredibly upset as a shadow cast over his face.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t we take them home?¡± Cecil suddenly asked?¡ªmaking the butler look at her with a wide-open mouth before quickly closing it and pausing for a second.


    ¡°T-that¡­ well¡­ I suppose...¡± the butler hesitantly said. I noticed the guards were walking away and returning to wherever they came from, seeing the whole thing had been cleared up. The butler seemed to have remembered something and quietly approached us; kneeling with one knee on the ground.


    ¡°I-I am truly sorry about everything... ¡° he said as he lowered his head.


    ¡°N-No need.¡± I was not used to being treated so respectfully. I think it was the first time it has ever happened¡­ Making me feel important is rather awkward. After saying my words the butler raised his head and looked at the three of us in general.


    ¡°M-My name is Gerard, I will be at your service,¡± he faithfully said and then stood up. He went close to Cecil which made her retract and offered his hand to her. However, she quietly shook her head and walked over to us. The butler looked with cast-down eyes and began walking in a certain direction. It seemed to be northeast of the plaza. Cecil slightly pushed me, prompting me to follow along with everyone.


    ¡°I am sorry,¡± Cecil quietly apologized to me as we were walking. I just gave her a wry smile and told her to not mind it. I don¡¯t blame her, I could only assume her household was in a turmoil.


    ¡°Cecil, how long have you been gone for?¡± She went into thinking for a second from my question.


    ¡°One week¡­¡± she dejectedly informed me. I guess that explained the butler being so shaken in general and the heartwarming reunion that had happened. She basically got kidnapped and was missing for one week so it was no surprise seeing the butler overreact, for the most part¡­ I still don¡¯t understand the psychopath part¡­


    I really want to know why he would call me that¡­ I feel like that¡¯s the first time I have been called something along those lines¡­ He did say torture. I wonder.


    ¡°Cecil, why was Gerard like that?¡± I asked while tilting my head.


    ¡°Well¡­ I don¡¯t know, I kind of just told him about Aizen''s teaching method and then he became tense,¡± she said while looking at the ground with dead eyes.


    He did say torture¡­ Yep, this makes no sense at all. I mean Aizen did do something weird. I could only assume she used some of her mana to prompt a change, but I don¡¯t understand how it could be considered torture¡­ I think I should ask him if I get the chance. It would certainly allow me to know what the reasoning was¡­


    We kept following behind Gerard. I noticed how the cobblestone floor started looking cleaner and newer as we continued.  Eventually, the houses started looking fancier, and instead of being made out of wood?¡ªthey started being made out of some type of concrete?¡ªrock. I stopped.


    ¡°Yami?¡± Cecil called for me, but I was too busy looking at that?¡ª two marble buildings with a snow-like surface, probably the tallest buildings I had seen since I had gotten here. I would say about three to four floors. They were full of windows and had a huge banner with the same crest as the coins. And also a center fountain with three layers for the water to go through. It was too white¡­ Way too white, my eyes started to hurt¡­ I started feeling my body get swayed. I also happened to notice that Ari and Gerard were looking at me awkwardly. Aizen was too busy looking at the white buildings.


    ¡°Yami?¡± Cecil called out for me again, making me blink a few times. I had been looking at those buildings unmoving for a few seconds¡­


    ¡°Ah, sorry. We can continue now¡­¡± I awkwardly apologized. The butler sighed and so did Cecil, Aizen finally realized what was going on around her. We resumed our walk but it was the first time I had seen those buildings. I did not see people around so I had no idea what they were.


    ¡°That was the magic academy,¡± she silently informed me.


    ¡°Those two buildings?¡± I had to ask to make sure. She just nodded in response. Hmm¡­ Well, I can see it being a school. But why so white?! Now thinking about it¡­ The entire capital was like made out of white marble or something¡­ It was unrealistically white¡­


    After some more walking, I noticed the houses changed suddenly and it became more like a private area. Most houses had a guard or two in front of them, and the houses themselves had at least two floors and were made out of some type of fancy stone. They looked way better than most of the other buildings we had seen previously. I could only assume the houses were expensive. I noticed a guard waving at us in the distance as we kept walking. Then we arrived in front of a house that was probably three times bigger than all the previous ones; made out of some gray stone that looked incredibly durable. It also had two porches below the second floor. that were being supported by three pillars each. They were divided by the entrance itself. I think it was a mansion. Needless to say. The building was quite daunting. I gulped.


    ¡°Oh, Gerard, who might these girls be?¡± the entrance guard curiously asked while looking at all of the unfamiliar faces. Gerard paused and then quickly recovered.


    ¡°They are honored guests¡­¡± Well¡­ I certainly don¡¯t mind the idea of being an honored guest, and we did return Cecil. But I don¡¯t understand what is about to come. I noticed the guard looked at Fenri numerous times, however, it kind of just looked like a docile tamed wolf to him so he ended up shrugging and giving a nod of approval. We crossed the black metal gates.


    I did not expect Fenri to get approval. But then again, he is mostly harmless. For the most part¡­ I am pretty sure Fenri is domesticated anyways. He is a pretty smart wolf¡­ Now thinking about it¡­ He did behave in a similar matter in the game, albeit he required commands instead of acting on its own in the midst of battle. So he is technically domesticated?


    We walked inside the mansion with Fenri. Somehow they did not seem bothered despite the floor being mostly covered in a red carpet. I wonder how long it took to clean? Is the carpet even cleaned? All of the walls were white, while I was looking around, I saw a painting of a middle-aged man?¡ªbrown hair and eyes, with a small mustache. He had slight wrinkles on his forehead and to the edges of his mouth. I looked at the painting for a second or two.


    ¡°Please follow me,¡± Gerard requested. We followed Gerard to a side room next to the entrance. It had three couches and a brick fireplace in the middle of the wall. Sunlight was brightly lighting the white-walled room from the windows across the fireplace. A pleasant wood coffee table in the center of all the couches. It was within reach from any couch.


    A maid came into the room and prompted all of us to sit. Leaving Cecil and Gerard standing.


    ¡°We need to go report to my lord,¡± Gerard firmly said as he held Cecil¡¯s hand and took her away. She had some grim face and seemed to be slightly shaking. But nothing that I could do about it. Family is family. A maid brought tea and elegantly served it to us without saying anything and then stood by the doorway. She did look at my eyes for one or two seconds before returning to being a statue.


    ¡°What are we even doing here?¡± Aizen spontaneously asked.


    ¡°Good question¡­¡± I did not think this through¡­ it kind of just happened.


    ¡°I am fine with this,¡± Ari said as she took a sip from her tea.


    I looked at my tea and noticed sugar cubes on a small ceramic plate. I put a lot of sugar?¡ªfour cubes. It was black tea, and I don¡¯t particularly love the bitterness. After diluting the cubes inside the tea I took a sip.


    ¡°Perfect,¡± I muttered in satisfaction. I did notice the maid gave me a weird look, but well¡­ It didn¡¯t really matter.

 (Chpt. 35.5) Warm welcome.

    Alice.


    Also, I am quite shocked by you people. I might get crucified by this, but... I normally put at least the equivalent of three to four sugar cubes in my tea. Does it taste like sugar only? Yes. Do I like it? Yes, I like the smell. So even if I am drinking 90% sugar it is still tea in my eyes.


    ¡°This is useless¡­ Totally useless!¡± I clenched my fist and looked at my desk.


    BANG.


    Where is my daughter¡­ It has been one week since she¡­ since she disappeared. Why¡­ Just, what did I do to deserve this!? Was I a bad father?! Yes¡­ That must be it. There is no other way¡­ This is god¡¯s punishment for a sinner like me. I am not religious, but dear god. I hope my daughter is fine. I want her to be fine. I want to see her. I will no longer care about noble etiquette. I will only care about her well being. I will on¡ª


    Slam.


    ¡°Lord Firil!¡± A panting butler (Gerard) that had jolted into the room breathlessly exclaimed.


    ¡°...  W-What?¡± That was¡­


    ¡°My lord¡­ I-I have come to report¡­ I, I was by the gates and I think I saw milady!¡± Gerard informed me. I jolted from my seat and looked at him for a second before ringing the master bell and issuing orders to some other butler. I still had questions to ask.


    After asking a few questions I asked Gerard to bring her safe¡ªhe left shortly after.


    * * *


    It has been quite a while and Gerard is not back. What happened? I want to see my daughter. However, I don¡¯t really know what to do now. What if Gerard ran into trouble? That would not be a desirable outcome. I want to see Cecil, but do I even deserve to see her at this point?


    As I was questioning myself, I heard the door open.


    ¡°Milady. Cecil, is back!¡±


    Gerard joyously exclaimed.  I froze and jolted from my seat. Not believing what he just said. I saw her peeking from the door, she was shaking and looking at me with teary eyes. I wanted her to know how sorry I was. She looked at me fixedly expecting something. However, that look in her eyes was of fear¡­ At that moment, I remembered... I remembered all of the things I had done for the sake of the family and not for my daughter. I had made up my mind. I walked across the room and stood in front of her. She just looked at me in hopelessness making me slightly flinch.


    ¡°My daughter. No, Cecil. I am sorry,¡± I regretfully said as I knelt looking at the ground. I could not see her expression, all I heard was silence.


    ¡°What are you sorry about? I should be the one apologizing¡­¡± she quietly said. However, I just grit my teeth. That was not true. I started shaking my head.


    ¡°No, I am sorry¡­ for everything¡­ for neglecting you¡­ for not paying attention¡­ for¡ª¡±


    I paused as I heard some sniffling. I lifted my head up.


    ¡°No¡­" she quietly shook her head before looking at me teary-eyed. "That¡¯s a lie!¡±


    She sprinted out of the room in dismay. Leaving me with a wide-open mouth. Gerard was frozen. I just did not know what to do¡­ No, there was nothing to do. I had done everything in the worst way possible. Over the last few days, I had been questioning myself, however, no matter how much I thought about it. I was the one that was wrong. I stood up and tried to straighten myself, but it was hard with such a dagger in my chest.


    ¡°My lord¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t mind it.¡± I quietly shook my head. Gerard started fidgeting and sweating. I just looked at him not knowing what it was all about. His shoulders were tense.


    ¡°My lord¡­ You have guests¡­¡± he informed me.


    ¡°I don¡¯t remember having visits scheduled,¡± he just shook his head in response to my statement.


    ¡°They are the adventurers that rescued Cecil, and¡­ I had the guards point their spears at them¡­¡± So that¡¯s how it was¡­ I normally would be mad about it, but seeing my daughter again is priceless. I noticed Gerard was sweating as he waited for my reply. I placed my hand on Gerard¡¯s shoulder and firmly looked at him in the eyes.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, let¡¯s go see them,¡± I quietly said as I started walking out of the room. I would have liked to go with my daughter to see if she was fine. But she needed her time alone, she needed to think. I had failed, but I won¡¯t fail again. Not this hard¡­


    ¡°Gerard, what kind of adventurers are they?¡± I curiously asked him.


    ¡°Emm¡­ I don¡¯t know¡­ they are all girls,¡± Gerard told me the only thing he knew. I don¡¯t know what kind of thing happened, but I will see what actually happened later.


    Although¡­ All girls? Are they going to be like those female adventurers I saw once that looked stronger and more masculine than most of the guards at the noble council? Just thinking about it makes me shiver¡­ But guests are guests, and they did save my daughter. I ought to compensate them properly. They are guests of honor, yes.


    ¡°Anything I need to know about the guests?¡± I asked Gerard as we walked down the hallway.


    ¡°I guess the only important part is. One of them has a wolf monster as a pet? It seems to be tamed but it¡¯s way too relaxed to even be tamed,¡± Gerard informed me as he second-guessed himself. It was still valuable information. Being scared by a wolf in the room would make me look bad, so I had to prepare myself for it.


    I kept silently walking with Gerard behind me. Eventually, we arrived at the main entrance. I took a left turn towards the guest room. As soon as I entered I couldn¡¯t help but stare fixedly at the wolf.


    ¡®Cute.¡¯ I unexpectedly muttered as I saw him licking his paws and playing with a golden-haired girl. There were two girls on the couch. A silver-haired one with amber eyes; she gave me a quick glance and then returned to enjoy her tea. And a white-haired girl with two different eye colors just enjoying her tea. She did not even notice I had entered. Giving me such a warm welcome made me slouch and I just quietly took a seat. I had no energy to actually receive them properly, the only sleep I got was when I passed from exhaustion...


    Gerard stepped into the room, the silver-haired girl gave him another curious glance before returning to her tea. Gerard petrified when he saw me just sitting on the couch not doing absolutely anything. He stood in front of the fireplace for a few seconds. He straightened himself and looked at the girls.


    ¡°Ehem¡­ This is my lord, the viscount Firil Cereslin.¡± He gestured towards me once he had done the introduction. I stood up and looked at the white-haired girl, then at the others.


    ¡°Just Firil is fine.¡± I tried being friendly with them. I had no idea how adventurers were. Besides, etiquette shouldn¡¯t even be a thing when they saved my daughter.


    ¡°I see,¡± the silver-haired girl said as she took a sip.


    ¡°Kugh,¡± the golden-haired girl let out a weird sound when she tripped over the wolf.


    ¡°Woof.¡±


    What¡¯s with these people? Oh,  the white-haired girl is looking down? Is she thinking about something? She lifted her gaze and looked at me.


    ¡°Umm, I am sorry about that,¡± she flashed me a wry smile. ¡°I am Yami, she is Aizen, this is Ari and this cute one over here is Fenri.¡± She introduced the entire group and then started petting the wolf.


    Finally¡­ Someone with common sense. Now onto what Gerard told me.


    ¡°Is it true that you girls saved Cecil?¡± I gulped as I finished my sentence. I noticed the girl that was named Yami started scratching her cheek.


    ¡°Well, yeah. We did save her,¡± she quietly confirmed. I had listened to everything I wanted.


    ¡°Thank you!¡± I exclaimed as I deeply bowed.


    ¡°My Lord?!¡± Gerard was flustered but that didn¡¯t matter. I had to do it.


    ¡°Thank you for saving my daughter,¡± I thanked them again. As I lifted my head I noticed the white-haired girl was scratching her cheek again and averted her gaze.


    ¡°Are you Cecil¡¯s father?¡± I nodded towards her question, the scratching stopped and she looked at me fixedly. ¡°Well¡­ I kind of had a feeling she did not want to see you.¡± I froze. I don¡¯t know what I was expecting, but considering how I treated her in the past, it''s likely that this girl knows her better than me. What a disaster¡­ I went back to sitting.


    ¡°Yami was the name right?¡± she nodded. ¡°Mistress Yami¡ª¡±


    ¡°Yami is fine,¡± she interrupted me with a bitter smile.


    ¡°... Yami, I really love my daughter, rather¡­ after she went missing I realized the mistakes I had made, thank you for bringing her back, it''s unfortunate she did not want to see me. I will treat her properly now.¡± It pained me to word it like that, but it was the truth. She nodded with a faint smile. I noticed the golden-haired girl looked at me fixedly as I finished my sentence. I think her name was Ari.


    ¡°Umm, Firil right? This might be rude of me, but I think she just needs time alone. If she did not want to see you, she would have refused the idea of being taken to the capital,¡± she quietly informed me.


    Who is this girl? She seems just a bit older than my treasure (daughter) yet she is really mature. The ''me'' of two weeks ago would have been very proud. But that is in the past¡­ Her opinion seems completely logical, I guess she is right. I should just give her time and allow her to do what she wants for now. I can¡¯t completely let her be free sadly, I still want her to be able to do something for herself when she is older.


    ¡°Can we go now?¡± the silver-haired girl asked without interest. Yami just looked at her with narrowed eyes, Ari paused. I guess that was her normal behaviour. What a weird group. However, even if they want to go, I can¡¯t let them go without giving them something.


    ¡°Are you girls leaving now? I will give you anything you ask for, anything, it will serve as my gratitude for saving my daughter,¡± I informed them. The white-haired girl or Yami; started scratching her cheek again.


    ¡°Well¡­ We don¡¯t really need anything¡­¡± she dejectedly informed me something impossible.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be like that, it can be money, it can be items.¡± What type of adventurer wouldn¡¯t want a [Rare] grade flame sword? Something they can never hope to get. I noticed Yami just gave me a wry smile.


    ¡°About that¡­ we seriously don¡¯t need items. I am pretty sure I lost a few [uncommon] ones already. They are pretty disp¡ª ouch...¡± She was hit in the head by Ari.


    ¡°Don¡¯t listen to her, sometimes she doesn¡¯t get what she is talking about,¡± Ari said with a bright smile.


    What¡¯s with these people. [Uncommon] items are disposable? Ha? I don¡¯t even think of them as disposable¡­ Looks like items won¡¯t convince them. But wealth is never bad.


    ¡°What about money,¡± I looked towards Yami who seemed to be the one doing the talking most of the time.


    ¡°Money isn¡¯t really a problem either¡­¡± she said scratching her cheek again.


    How is this possible? Are these girls nobles? Wait¡­ Now looking at their clothing,  they do seem pretty expensive. While they are dressed in a total casual attire, the fabric glisters under the light, it¡¯s sparkly clean. Well, what a problem¡­ What can I give these girls-


    ¡°K-Yami, can we get an inn with a bath?¡± The silver-haired girl asked out of the blue with a slight stutter. I think her name was Aizen.


    ¡°You are being really pushy today¡­¡± she tiredly said. Wait a second, I just realized. She did say an inn with a bath¡­ I do want to repay them¡­ They look better and act better than most nobles¡­ Well, aside from the Aizen girl¡­ Though¡­ They do dress well and seem to be fairly relaxed. Gerard is probably going to be surprised by this decision, but it doesn¡¯t matter. I am sure Cecil would like that as well.


    ¡°Do you girls want to stay here?¡± Gerard froze. One of the girls instantly nodded, one paused, and Yami went into deep thought.


    ¡°I-Is it really fine?¡± Ari was the first one to speak after a brief silence.


    I just nodded. I noticed Aizen stood up and placed her empty teacup on the table.


    ¡°Gerard was it? I want to have a bath,¡± she commanded him. Gerard looked at me with a troubled face and I just nodded. This girl¡­ She behaves like some type of royalty or something. She left the room with Gerard.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Can I have a bath as well?¡± Ari quietly asked me. I just nodded. She sprinted out of the room to follow after Gerard. The house suddenly got a lot livelier. I was left alone with Yami.


    ¡°Um¡­ I am sorry about that.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it,¡± I paused. ¡±Has Cecil said anything bad about me?¡± I asked Yami. My curiosity could not be quenched anymore. I had to know. She placed a finger on her chin and looked up for a second or two until she looked back to me.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t exactly remember her saying anything about you, however, she did seem pretty depressed about her life routine.¡±


    ¡°Routine?¡± I asked reflexively. What routine? Does she have one? I noticed Yami thought for a second again and turned to me.


    ¡°Something along the lines of ¡®behave, magic academy, sleep,¡¯ or that¡¯s what she said.¡± She shrugged. ¡°But, magic-academy might not be an issue anymore.¡±


    Before I could say anything she said something unbelievable.


    ¡°What makes you think that?¡± I had to know.


    ¡°Well¡­ Remember Aizen?¡± I nodded. ¡°She is a magician and Cecil did seem to have a slight interest in her, oh right¡­ Don¡¯t judge her too much, she is a good dra¡ª¡± she froze as she spoke in affection


    Dra-? Dra what? Well, I guess I cannot push her¡­ To believe that girl was a mage¡­ I normally would say something, but seeing they probably know Cecil more than me then I guess I should trust her...


    ¡°How long can we stay?¡± she asked as she was fidgeting. I wonder¡­ Well¡­ we don¡¯t have aristocrat meetings here often¡­ I guess it doesn¡¯t really matter? Besides, the servants were eyeing the wolf as if it was the new family pet.


    ¡°As long as you¡¯d like,¡± I said with a smile.

 (Chpt. 36) Father and daughter.

    Alice.


    Hmm, her father is completely different to what I expected. You know, I had spears pointed at me¡­ Now, knowing Firil is the boss of Gerard, and Gerard did that. Well, I would certainly expect something less... friendly? I might be illogical, but to think he¡¯d allow us to stay. Also, I almost called Aizen dragon in front of him. Haha¡­ Just arrived and I am placing myself at wits¡¯ end with my actions¡­ Hey, but at least we get to stay here as long as we¡¯d like.


    ¡°Did my daughter tell you she lived here?¡± He asked out of nowhere, but I just shook my head. She did not say anything until Aizen questioned her.


    ¡°We were coming to the capital and ran into some bandits along the way, that¡¯s where we found Cecil.¡± He quietly nodded hearing me.


    ¡°If you don¡¯t mind me asking, what¡¯s so eye-catching about the capital to adventurers like you? I don¡¯t mean to be rude, but considering you declined items and wealth I truly don¡¯t see the point in being here.¡± He did say something perfectly reasonable, also he seemed to want to know more about us. I could only assume it was because we were staying here.


    ¡°Well, Aizen got a letter of recommendation for the Magic Academy, and I personally came here for materials. I want to be a smith once I reach level 40 on taming,¡± I said with a wry smile. I was not going to expose myself like that again. I don¡¯t know what could potentially happen, but better this way.


    ¡°A letter of recommendation you say?¡± he said with wide-open eyes. I just nodded.


    ¡°That¡¯s the first time I heard of someone getting a letter of recommendation for the magic academy. It simply doesn¡¯t happen. Self taught mages do exist but most of them are already settled so they have no time to waste on something like the academy," he said while looking at the ground. Then looked back at me.


    ¡°Is there any reason to why she wants to be in the academy?¡± he said while looking at me. I just shrugged.


    ¡°Well, she just received it without requesting, although. She seems to find it interesting.¡± I noticed Firil started thinking while looking at the roof but that did not matter much to me. He nodded and looked back at me.


    ¡°If that¡¯s how it is... You did say you wanted to become a smith, correct?¡± I nodded.


    ¡°I know this dwarven smith, I am sure he¡¯d be willing to help you if I contact him.¡± He said with a smile. Noble power huh? I wonder, dwarves¡­ Aren¡¯t they good in smithing and crafting classes in general? Don¡¯t do it¡­ You know it¡¯s best to not do it.


    ¡°I would like to meet him at least once.¡± I said with a crooked and forced smile.


    To believe my willpower is so lackluster¡­ Well, worst case scenario I just need to leave the capital. No big deal¡­ Ahhhh! How did I even manage to do this. How frustrating! Truly frustrating!


    As I was holding my head in pain, Fenri came over to me and looked at me in the eyes. I guess it was to calm me down.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± I calmly whispered in his ear as I rubbed his head. He was more like a dog or any other animal in all aspects, but what do I know? Wait¡­ What do I know¡­ There has to be a way to get general information about the world, like an encyclopedia or something¡­ Ah, that¡¯s it.


    ¡°Umm, Firil, this might sound slightly awkward, but is there a library in the capital?¡± He was probably my best bet, he seems pretty friendly and owes us a lot (kind of). So he probably won¡¯t question my silliness.


    ¡°Hmm, I do have a library. You can ask one of the maids to take you there. If that¡¯s not enough then you can ask Gerard to guide you to the library in the noble district,¡± he firmly informed me. Although, shouldn¡¯t the library be more available?


    ¡°If you don¡¯t mind me asking. Why is the other library in the noble district?¡± He narrowed his eyes and looked at me.


    ¡°Sadly, information is power. As much as I hate to say it, us nobles try to stay on top over common people on all aspects of life, even status wise.¡± He was pretty serious about the whole ordeal. I guess I got a vague answer but I did get an answer. I wonder what is his level if he is somewhat high.


    ¡°If you don¡¯t mind me asking. Do you have more than one class?¡± I don¡¯t really care about his exact number. For all I could care he could be level 120 and it wouldn¡¯t matter. He smiled and stood up; puffed his chest.


    ¡°I have two classes and I am an [Archmage].¡± He said with a grandiose aura.


    ¡°I see..." Just archmage? Didn¡¯t Cecil get that?


    ¡°Impressive right? I hope my daughter surpasses me one day. But to do that she needs a class first,¡± he dejectedly said. Wait¡­ He doesn¡¯t know his daughter has a class? Wow¡­ Well, I don¡¯t know if I should tell him or not¡­


    ¡°Well you s--¡±


    ¡°Yami?¡±


    I was called by a girly voice. I looked towards the entrance to the room, there was no one. But soon enough Cecil peered into the room, looking at me. She entered the room and as she was walking towards me, she noticed her dad and froze.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Cecil?¡± Not knowing what to do I just called for her. She blinked a few times and her eyes gained light again. She silently walked towards me and set next to me without saying a word. I noticed Firil had a drop of sweat running down his forehead. I guess it was just an unexpected situation.


    ¡°Cecil.¡± Firil called out to his daughter. She just looked at him and opened her mouth.


    ¡°Cecil? Wasn¡¯t I just ¡®your daughter¡¯? Did I even have a name?!¡± I could hear her resentment.


    This escalated quickly¡­ Alright Kuro¡­ Just don¡¯t say anything stupid and you will be fine. These type of things are noble things right? I mean sure, she seems to have gripes with her dad. But what can I do about it? I don¡¯t even have experience with those things¡­ I should just not say anything, I can¡¯t leave the room either; it would look disrespectful leaving mid conversation¡­ What do I do?


    As I was having an internal panic attack, I managed to see that Firil had started looking at the ground and fiddling with his hands. Cecil was just looking at him fixedly. I kind of just sat there, not knowing what to do. Suddenly Firil rubbed his temple and looked at Cecil again.


    ¡°You are Cecil, my daughter and more importantly, the treasure of my life.¡± He said with resolute voice. However, Cecil instantly shook her head.


    ¡°Am I really? Aren¡¯t I just some object?¡± she quietly questioned. This time Firil shook his head.


    ¡°No¡­ I made a mistake¡­ I did not realize until I lost you how wrong I was, that¡¯s why i want to ask for forgiveness.¡± he said as he removed himself from the couch and prostrated on the ground in front of his daughter. I had a bad feeling about this noble behaviour. I felt like Gerard would¡¯ve sliced my throat if he was there just by looking at his master doing that¡­


    Firil slowly lifted his head to see his daughter after receiving no reply. She was standing up, looking at him with clenched fists and teeth.


    ¡°D-Do you know¡­ How much I lost just to attempt to behave like a noble?¡±


    ¡°Cecil¡­¡± Firil quietly called to her.


    ¡°Do you know how much I lost?! I have no friends¡­ The teachers in the academy made fun of me... ¡°


    She was tearing up.


    ¡°I-I am sorry¡­ This foolish father of yours never realized.¡± He said as he looked on the ground. Cecil just let out a dry laugh.


    ¡°... Of course you didn¡¯t¡­ You were too busy doing paperwork instead¡­ I tried my best, but it was never enough for you¡­¡±


    ¡°I-I--¡±


    ¡°What would mother think?¡± I noticed Firil petrified. It was probably a forbidden topic.


    Silence filled the room.


    Firil was looking at the ground and started shaking--after a few seconds he started quietly speaking.


    ¡°Cecil¡­ I-I don¡¯t deserve you, I know I don¡¯t...I-I¡­¡± At that moment Cecil realized what she was doing to her father. All her pent-up resentment, she was letting it go just on him. However, was Cecil the only one with problems? Cecil just looked at her dad with a bitter face.


    ¡°Father, I--¡±


    He was silent, looking at the ground. After rubbing his face he looked back at her.


    ¡°Just dad is fine.¡± He interrupted her as he stood up with somewhat red eyes. However, despite hearing all of this, he still looked at his daughter (Cecil) directly in the eyes. And spontaneously hugged her. Cecil froze and had a wide-open mouth. Her eyes started trembling.


    ¡°Cecil¡­ I-I might have failed as a father. But I won¡¯t fail again, please forgive me. Forgive my neglect... forgive this foolish father of yours,¡± he paused. ¡°... But I want you to know one thing... I am proud of you. I was blinded. I wanted you to be the best, I wanted you to receive the best. But I never realized what you truly needed was nothing like that¡­¡± After a pause he whispered in her ear ¡°Cecil, I love you.¡±


    ¡°Uwaa... ¡± Cecil broke on Firil¡¯s shoulder. Tightly hugging him as she cried. Firil closed his eyes as he tightly hugged his daughter.


    Why am I even here?! Should I even be here!? I made a mistake. I should probably go.


    ¡°Yami.¡± Firl called for me while Cecil was still under his embrace.


    ¡°Yes?!¡± Why would he even call for me? Is he gonna execute me!?


    ¡°Thank you,¡± he silently said.


    What did I even do? I just stayed silent the whole time watching both of you have a family drama¡­


    After a few seconds Cecil was looking at her dad in a new light with flushed cheeks. After her father let her go and went back to sitting. She stood there looking at him.


    ¡°Dad¡­¡± She silently called for Firil.


    ¡°Yes?¡± He gently responded.


    ¡°I have something to say.¡± She looked at him fixedly as he took a seat. Firil quietly watched her as he wiped his eyes.


    ¡°I became an [Archmage]!¡± She joyously exclaimed. I looked back at Firil. His eyes grew wide and his muscles let go of him, letting his body collapse on the couch. Cecil started fidgeting as she watched her unmoving dad. He blinked a few times.


    ¡°I-Is that true?¡± He spoke with a trembling voice.


    ¡°Yes!¡± She cheerfully affirmed.


    Firil was shaking. I kind of just started playing with my hands as I looked at them. I had absolutely no idea of what to do.


    ¡°GERARD!¡± Firil called out for him at the top of his lungs. I started hearing a disaster outside the room. Broken plates, a lot of running. Until Gerard jolted into the room with heavy breath and bathed in sweat.


    ¡°Y-Yes, M-My Lord?!¡± He was flustered.


    ¡°We are having a banquet tonight! We are celebrating!¡± Firil joyously exclaimed with sparkly eyes. Gerard wanted to say something but Cecil looked at him and quietly shook her head. Gerard gulped.


    ¡°I will get things ready.¡± he bowed and left in a hurry.


    ¡°Cecil, how did that happen? And why didn¡¯t you tell me about it?¡± Cecil started fiddling with her hair as she was questioned.


    ¡°Well¡­ About that¡­ I thought you would¡¯ve been mad so I never told you¡­ And then you apologized and I couldn¡¯t believe it, so I ran away¡­¡± She awkwardly said with a wry smile as she scratched her neck. Firil awkwardly nodded.


    ¡°And about how I became an [Archmage]...¡± she paused, and looked with sparkling eyes. ¡°Aizen did it! She is amazing!¡± Firil did not seem to believe her words and just looked at me. I nodded. Firil placed a hand on his chin and nodded. Well, then again I don¡¯t know what kind of impression she left on him. But probably not a good one, I don¡¯t think Aizen mixes well with nobles.

 (Chpt. 37) Frustration.

    Alice.


    Have a better title? Let me know! Also, grammar is probably questionable; find missing punctuations? Let me know as well.


    I have slightly changed PoV formatting, it will no longer be a guessing game. I will be using guillemets for it. So, it will now be displayed as: ?X? ''X'' is the character. So... Don''t think much about it. I might start doing it a lot. Since this arc has a huge amount of PoV switches. They might become constant and the chapters without PoV switches might become somewhat uncommon.


    I was awkwardly sitting with no sugary tea to sip from anymore. Firil was sitting with his daughter (Cecil) on top of his lap; patting her every now and then. It was cute. However, I felt weird, I did not really belong in the family setting. Rather¡­ Cecil wasn¡¯t a family member, unlike Aizen and Ari. This situation was more like a father and child kind of thing, which I did not understand, but I did not mind it that much. They were quietly talking between each other, I wasn¡¯t paying much attention.


    As I was quietly looking at the table while minding my own business. Firil called out for me.


    ¡°Yami.¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    I tilted my head. He thought for a second before nodding and then fixing his gaze on me again.


    ¡°This might be presumptuous of me. Since you are my benefactor.¡± he took a deep breath. ¡°Where are you from?¡± It was a really random question that I had no real answer for. I just awkwardly scratched my cheek with a wry smile.


    Now, I need to tell him where I am from¡­ Is this common courtesy or something? Cultures are weird...


    Since he saw me immersed in deep thoughts he just shook his head. ¡°You don¡¯t have to tell me if you don¡¯t want to. I was just curious seeing your rather¡­ peculiar features.¡± Well, he is right¡­ Who has heterochromatic eyes? In the game, it was rather common, because you have to make your avatar cool, but I know it really isn¡¯t that common in life. Ah, well. Not like I could actually answer his question even if I actually tried. I could just mention an in-game location but there is a chance the place doesn¡¯t even exist.


    I have been thinking about this for a while now, but aside from the game thing and the church thing. How do beastkin do here? I just got some vague answer from Cecil that time I asked. It was rather awkward asking him after he just called me peculiar, but I had to know.


    ¡°Emm¡­ Firil, are there beastkin in the capital?¡±


    He froze and looked at me.


    ¡°¡­ Yami, you shouldn¡¯t worry about beastkin.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± I just quietly questioned. He sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose for a second.


    ¡°If you insist¡­ I don¡¯t dislike beastkin, however, the church has had a big influence on the capital... I don¡¯t think I need to continue explaining.¡±


    I nodded in response. What a pain¡­ Just¡­ Why does the church hate beastkin so much? I mean, they really do seem to have a grudge against that one race. I would be royally screwed if I didn¡¯t happen to have such a convenient item, wouldn¡¯t I?


    I looked at my ring with a bitter smile for a second and then sighed.


    At least Cecil seems to be doing a lot better. She has a warm smile and looks at her father with sparkling eyes. So I guess that¡¯s good, I wonder how was her father before? I mean considering the drama that broke out and all¡­ Well, it already happened, I probably shouldn¡¯t pry about family issues. But now that we are on the capital. At least I will have some things to do.


    ¡°Yami¡­¡± Hearing his tone, something was odd.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± I tilted my head with a puzzled look.


    ¡°Could I pet your wolf?¡±


    ¡®Even, men have a thing for Fenri? How surprising¡­ Well, I don¡¯t mind him being petted, it¡¯s more of a matter if he would like to or not.¡¯ I just looked at Fenri, awaiting his decision. He slowly got up and lazily moved in front of Firil¡¯s feet and parked himself on the ground again. Firil gave him a puzzled look and glanced at me ?¡ª I shrugged in response.


    He gulped and began petting him. I noticed he kept doing so for quite a while. Eventually even slowly doing it. He seemed to really be into his fur. Well, it was fluffy and silky smooth, so I couldn¡¯t blame him for it. He finally stopped and looked at Fenri fixedly.


    ¡°I have to say¡­ that¡¯s the most luxurious fur I have ever touched.¡±


    I just nodded, not knowing how to react to his weird acknowledgment. I mean, it was a compliment, sure. But, it was still a rather weird one. He was thinking about something.


    ¡°How long will you three stay in the capital?¡± He asked out of the blue.


    ¡°Well¡­ I don¡¯t know.¡± I just gave him a truthful answer. Hearing me, I noticed his eyes lit up. And then swept his gaze across my entire body. It made me uncomfortable.


    ¡°Would you girls like to go to the academy with my daughter?¡±


    ¡°Dad?!¡± Cecil¡¯s face became flushed as she questioned her dad¡¯s proposition.


    ¡°Well¡­¡± I started scratching my cheek. ¡°I am not a mage, nor can I become one. I can check with Ari though.¡±


    ¡°I see... ¡° He acknowledged the facts while looking at the floor with cast-down eyes. I kind of felt pity for him. I decided to try to cheer him up a bit.


    ¡°While Aizen might have not given you the best impressions.¡± He nodded as I paused. ¡°She did receive an invitation letter to the academy, so there is a good chance your daughter might enjoy her stay there,¡± I informed Firil, however, his eyes carried doubt. Cecil just nodded.


    ¡°Why is that?¡±


    ¡°I said it, didn¡¯t I? She found it interesting. Whatever she finds interesting or amusing. If it¡¯s not amusing she might make it amusing.¡±


    I said with a grin. I actually wondered what would happen if she attended the academy. Firil gulped hearing me, but well. If it becomes amusing or not, not my issue!


    ¡°You girls said you were adventurers, right?¡± I nodded. ¡°So, if you don¡¯t mind me asking, what rank are you girls?¡± Well, I guess I could answer at least that.


    ¡°[Copper]¡± Hearing me, his soul left his body. After a few seconds, his body regained color and he started muttering things. I could see the frustration dwelling in his eyes. Eventually, he nodded.


    ¡°I see¡­ Well, I hope you enjoy your stay.¡± He placed Cecil down and left the room; I looked at her.


    ¡°What do you think made him so frustrated?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­¡± She quietly answered.


    * * *


    ?Firil?


    Just copper? I can¡¯t help but feel like she was lying to me, even though she said it so casually. I can understand her not wanting to share her origins. But why would she hide her adventurer rank? She did spout the disposable part of the items. Does she seriously expect me to believe a [Copper] ranked adventurer can even acquire items? Well, no use worrying about it. I kind of just feel annoyed being lied face to face like that. I guess she can¡¯t trust me, well that¡¯s fine.


    ¡®It is indeed fine, having my daughter back¡­¡¯ From those thoughts, I couldn¡¯t help but tremble from joy as I walked throughout the house; I headed towards my office.


    I still can¡¯t help but wonder, where do these girls want to go or achieve. I mean, adventurers are normally interested in wealth. But considering she turned down a monetary compensation, that is probably not the case. She does not strike me as a battle maniac either...


    She did mention being interested in smithing, but that does not have to do with adventurers much... What about the other girl? Aizen¡­ She apparently was a mage, I wonder how good she was to receive a recommendation letter.


    And that wolf¡­ Was it really a tamed monster? I got the rare chance to see one wolf monster, but the fur was nowhere near as good, and it was less¡­ docile? I mean, this wolf looked to me like a house dog instead. I did not even hear it make sounds. I heard that tamers had a hard time with some monsters because well, they were only tamed and not domesticated. But, this wolf is different. Also¡­ That fur¡­ I don¡¯t think I could get a material of that quality even if I tried my earnest.


    I sighed as I continued walking down the hallway. The doors to my office were now visible. I noticed Gerard was standing next to the doors. As soon as I arrived next to him, he bowed. However, his skin was somewhat paler than usual.


    ¡°My lord¡­¡± He looked me in the eyes. ¡°Are you really sure about the guests?¡±


    I nodded. However, what could make Gerard question my decision?


    ¡°Did something happen Gerard?¡± I asked out of concern.


    ¡°Well¡­ I-I was just wondering. My lord. Remember the mana torture method?¡± I slowly nodded¡­ How could I forget such an inhumane procedure? Although I wonder what Gerard intended with all of this. He was rather¡­  tense.


    ¡°Well¡­ Remember Milady?¡± I instantly nodded. ¡°Apparently they taught her mana perception and manipulation like that.¡± My heart came to a stop. ¡°Milady did say there was no torture involved, but I think we should ask them personally.¡± He said with a firm tone. It was indeed a rather weird situation.


    I felt rage boiling inside me when he linked the method with the girls and my treasure... If Gerard hadn¡¯t said there was no torture I would have forced the guards on the girls¡­ Gulp.


    Gerard expressed his thanks and apologies; then left to prepare the feast. I sat behind my desk.


    To believe I would hear about that method again¡­ A wicked method¡­ Most humans cannot handle mana from outside sources, nor mana of different attributes. By injecting foreign mana into another person¡¯s body it would simply make their mana¡­ Instable, eating the body away in a slow but painful process. However, this method was also known for its effectiveness or lack thereof.


    One could get rid of the mana by manipulating it outside its body. However, if the mana was left inside for an extended period of time, the inhumane torture would begin¡­ The effectiveness of allowing someone to perceive mana and try to manipulate it was there. But the drawbacks were too much¡­


    To believe Cecil would go past [Mage] and straight to [Archmage]... I can¡¯t help but feel joy. Intermediate rank mana manipulation and perception are a must. To believe she would acquire the intermediate versions first instead of beginner¡­ Wait¡­ While it is theoretically possible. Isn¡¯t this the first time it has happened?


    I rummaged through my documents regarding mages and their history. I did not have that many, but the few that I read and saw; did not contain anything like that¡­ Nor something like skipping the beginner level¡­


    I couldn¡¯t help but feel overly excited and happy for my daughter to have acquired the class. However, I hope she likes magic. Otherwise¡­ Her life might just get ruined unless she reaches level 40 and manages to find something she likes. Thinking about that makes me nervous¡­


    I spent an hour or two just thinking about all of the piled-up events from today. It was a rather eventful day. It was probably the most eventful day in years. However, the thing Cecil said still aches in my heart. ¡®What would mother say?¡¯ I don¡¯t know¡­


    The door opened.


    ¡°My lord.¡± Gerard was standing there. I looked behind me to see the outside. Before I had realized it, the sky was dark.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 38) Eventful banquet.

    Alice.


    ?Aizen?


    How should I put it, I am rather impressed? This bath... is¡­ great. White shiny floor and bathing tub? Well, it really isn¡¯t a tub. It¡¯s more like embedded inside the ground. A pool was it? Well, it doesn¡¯t matter. It¡¯s warm and it¡¯s relaxing. To think nobles would enjoy something like this every time they want. I kind of want to be a noble now¡­ Yeah, definitely


    I nodded to myself.


    I wonder if the noble found it rude? What was his name? I forgot. Cecil¡¯s father? Well, he did not seem to have ill-will unlike the butler when we first saw him. But, I don¡¯t like formalities much, I wonder how Kuro is doing alone in that room? Hmm, well it doesn¡¯t matter much, does it? Now onto what has been on my mind lately ¡ª To go or not to go to the magic academy? I kind of want to see the elf. I haven¡¯t seen that many elves after all. I heard they were good at magic or something along those lines.


    I chuckled and muttered under my breath ¡ª ¡¯This is going to be interesting, isn¡¯t it?¡¯


    ¡°Aizen?¡± Ari called out for me.


    ¡°Ah, no. Nothing¡­¡± I forgot she was there.


    Ari was looking at me with observant eyes. Before, she raised her hand slightly.


    ¡°Aizen, there is soap here. Want to try it?¡± It was a rather peculiar question. Now thinking about it, Kuro did ask about soap that one time. Or was it more than one time? Well, the biggest issue for me is. I don¡¯t exactly know what soap does, I mean it makes you clean. But, how do I know water doesn¡¯t do the same thing? Dragons only bathed in lakes. So¡­


    ¡°Sure¡­¡± I silently agreed to Ari. I did want to try it.


    She sluggishly approached me and handed me this oval-shaped bar that was somewhat dark. It felt greasy but smelled nice. ¡®So this is soap?¡¯ I muttered while feeling it on my hand. I had never seen soap before. It was slightly slippery and let out some bubbles. I saw Ari rubbing herself with it earlier so I did the same.


    It felt¡­ Normal? Like sliding something slippery atop of one¡¯s skin. But I did notice that it smelled nice and it made my skin shiny. I began rubbing it diligently,  the shiny skin it reminded me of my precious silvery scales. Before I knew the soap had run out. I looked at Ari who now had a bitter smile etched on her face. I wordlessly stared at her.


    ¡°...¡±


    Her eyebrows eventually went into a frown.


    ¡°W-Why, would you use all of the soap?¡± She shook her fist in anger, but I did not really care.


    ¡°It felt nice,¡± I monotonously informed her.


    ¡°Sigh... Just because it felt nice doesn¡¯t mean you should use it all¡­ I hope Firil doesn¡¯t get mad,¡± she dejectedly said. However, who was Firil? I wonder. It does sound rather familiar, but I don¡¯t quite remember who was named ¡®Firil¡¯. Well, it doesn¡¯t matter.


    Before I knew it, I heard some knocking behind the distant door on the bathroom.


    ¡°Dinner is ready.¡±


    A firm voice informed us and left. I think it was that hostile butler. What was his name... Gerard? I wonder why did he not just step into the bath, to look at us? I mean, better than talking behind a door... Kuro did try to avoid looking at people without clothes. Why is that? Well, no use. Clothes are a foreign concept to me, I only wear them because wind against the bare skin is uncomfortable.


    Ari and I left the bathroom without saying much. I wore the same clothes that Kuro gave me. They never really got dirty, I knew that. It¡¯s not something I could explain, but well. They did seem to have some type of magical energy roaming inside them. They were rather nice; items were nice.


    I noticed a lot of the butlers and maids were hurriedly doing chores or running from room to room. I wonder what was all the fuss about? Ari and I arrived at the main hall without saying much. I noticed Kuro was coming out of the guest room with a neutral expression. Looks like I did not miss out on much.


    ¡°Ah, Aizen,¡± she called for me in surprise.


    ¡°What?¡± She took long enough to notice me.


    ¡°Let¡¯s have dinner, or rather. A banquet as Firil called it.¡±


    A banquet? Hoh, this is rather nice. Who was Firil again? I keep hearing the same name. Is it the noble?  It must be the noble. He is the only person continuously being mentioned non-stop. Well, a banquet still doesn¡¯t sound so bad, I guess it can¡¯t be helped.


    ¡°Banquet it is.¡±


    After saying that, I followed Kuro. She grabbed Ari by the hand as we continued walking. Looks like Kuro was quite familiar with the mansion. Or was it Yami? Well, as long as I call her Yami when I address her I think it¡¯s fine.


    We arrived at a big room with chandeliers hanging from the white roof. A somewhat lengthy table with food being covered by dome lids. However, there were only five plates. The table looked rather empty on that part. I noticed the windows to the left were closed by soft-looking red curtains. It wasn''t really a big banquet. Only five empty plates and a lot of covered food at the center.


    As soon as the butlers saw us, they took our hands and guided us to our seats. I ended up next to Yami. Ari next to Cecil, and Firil in between Yami and Cecil. We were sitting at one end of the table. So, it looked kind of funny seeing the table was extremely big. It could probably take thirty people instead of just five.


    ¡°I must thank you, girls; for bringing my daughter back,¡± he humbly bowed. So, this was Firil? I do remember looking at him briefly earlier today. I ought to admit. That tea was really good.


    ¡°This banquet is a fest. A celebration of the unprecedented and unexpected events that happened recently!¡± He joyfully said. I glanced around the room. Some butlers were awestruck, some flinched as if what they saw wasn¡¯t normal. Gerard remained expressionless to his side.


    After we were sitting on the table and Firil had finished his speech, the butlers lifted the dome lids. A fragrant smell covered the room in an instant. I couldn''t help but lick my lips. Firil lifted his brow watching me. I glanced at him and before I noticed there was food in front of me. I curiously looked at it?? ¡ª different types of meat and vegetables, accompanied with some type of bread I had never seen before, for some reason I felt disappointed; you could expect nobles would eat something more...  Exotic?


    ¡°Is there something wrong with the food?¡± Firil asked seeing my puzzled expression. I just quietly shook my head and started eating.


    It was delicious, to say the least. I enjoyed dinner, everyone seemed to enjoy themselves but I noticed Firil¡¯s shoulders were somewhat stiff-- I couldn¡¯t quite understand the reason.


    The butlers took the plates and cleaned the tables, while we were still sitting. I don''t know if it was a normal thing. I kind of just looked at Ari and she had a puzzled look. Eventually, we were left alone in the room with only the five of us and Gerard.


    A cold and eerie silence descended as Firil was thinking.


    "So, I have been informed that? ¡ª Cecil learned mana perception and manipulation through you, correct?¡± He said as he looked at me with a cold gaze. I just nodded. What was the point of this anyways?


    Cecil seemed pale from the atmosphere. Gerard emotionlessly stood next to him. Yami started looking down not wanting to interrupt. Ari was just curiously looking at the whole situation without saying anything.


    When Firil heard me, he nodded.


    ¡°Would you mind telling me your methods?¡± I would have normally given a nonchalant reply, but the atmosphere was a little odd so I just nodded, however before that I had to confirm something. Was this the right thing? I wordlessly stared at Kuro until she met my fixed gaze and eventually, she awkwardly nodded. I began talking.


    ¡°Firil, do you have mana perception?¡± Hearing me; his mouth closed and he frowned.


    ¡°Yes..."


    Ah, that was good. I did not need to do a lengthy explanation then.


    ¡°Well, then. I want you to see the room¡¯s mana.¡± He nodded and Gerard frowned from me commanding him, but what else could I do? I don¡¯t mind shattering people¡¯s expectations. Now, how would I go about this? I could either ?¡ª take my ring off and show just how easy it is to manipulate mana, or just explain the whole process. Hmm... Well, I guess I will start with an explanation. The only reason I can think of the atmosphere being so sudden like this; was the first time we met the butler and he mentioned torture or something.


    ¡°So, if I remember correctly, torture got mentioned. Correct?¡± Hearing this, I confirmed with their nodding as sweat dripping from their foreheads.


    ¡°Well, I guess it could be seen as torture, if I did not know what I was doing,¡± I nonchalantly said. I knew that mana for most beings was also hazardous as well as a blessing. Of course, one could overcome it through sheer strength alone. If I were to try the same thing on Kuro except trying to kill him through mana poisoning or whatever it is called, it just would not work.


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± Firil calmly asked for an explanation.


    ¡°Well, as you know, mana poisoning is a thing,¡± he awkwardly nodded. ¡°But what if, the mana was also automatically extracted? Wouldn¡¯t it be harmless while at the same time allowing the target to perceive and feel mana?¡± He froze.


    BANG!


    ¡°What blasphemy are you saying?! Are you telling me that you ?¡ª out of all people. You can bend the laws of nature? Sorry, but¡­ that¡¯s a distasteful joke.¡± He rudely said. I just lightly chuckled and denied it with my finger. He frowned but did not say anything. It was time.


    ¡°Just watch then,¡± I said as I focused. ¡®Let¡¯s see, seeing he believes that that is a law of nature, then I guess taking the ring off would be too much.¡¯ With that consideration in mind I started. Breathe in breath out and?¡ªfreeze. The mana in the entire room stopped moving. It wasn¡¯t really a spell, it was more of a party trick. Mana manipulation only.


    ¡°H-How¡­¡± he asked in a trembling voice as his eyes darted around the room; everywhere he looked the mana was frozen. It was like watching the flow of the wind or watching blood flow through water, except it never moved. However, I could not keep this for long. I breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed my shoulders. Mana continued moving. It was mentally taxing to keep it from moving. Just having to imagine the action of every single particle of mana being frozen without missing a single one is tiring.


    He looked at me in disbelief with an agape mouth.


    ¡°Dad?¡± Cecil suddenly looked at him with a puzzled expression.


    ¡°Cecil, didn¡¯t you see what just happened?!¡± He looked at her with wide-open eyes. She just nodded.


    ¡°Well, yes. But what¡¯s so special about mana not moving?¡± She asked with even more confusion. At that moment, Firil sighed and muttered something before breaking into a smile.


    ¡°Looks like I need to give you a quick lesson on magic.¡± he paused. ¡°Mana flows around and comes around, meaning it can be influenced by manipulation to cast a spell for example. Mana is eternally moving, it is not supposed to stop, however, stopping mana is possible through manipulation, however, stopping the mana of an entire room is¡­ unheard of. The more mana you manipulate the more mental capacity it requires. The highest tier of spells does not require more than about this size of mana,¡± ?¡ª he clumsily gestured with his hands. It was not a very big space. He breathed and continued talking in excitement. ¡°Being able to manipulate mana in that quantity would place you next to the best magicians, however, the whole room? It kind of just looks pitiful in comparison.¡± He ended talking with a dry chuckle. Cecil awkwardly watched her father speak passionately about mana so she was stiff.


    Firil looked at me.


    ¡°I am sorry for earlier,¡± he bowed. ¡°May I ask, who are you?¡± His voice was extremely polite as if talking to a superior. Gerard was incredibly stiff and pale. This was rather awkward. I looked at Yami and Ari and they frantically shook their heads. My face turned into a smile.


    ¡°Just a girl.¡± They looked at me in disbelief. Gerard was about to open his mouth but paused. Firil, on the other hand, had been thinking for a bit before nodding.


    ¡°So, that¡¯s how it was.¡± He lightheartedly laughed. ¡°What an interesting group of adventurers!¡± He then looked at Cecil. ¡°You have made good friends.¡± A soft smile could be seen on his face as he stood up; leaving the room with a paled butler following behind.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 39) Wolf or dog?

    Alice.


    ?Firil?


    Just a girl? Well, I will believe her. To believe I would get to witness such an amazing magician, at such a young age too! I want to ask her?¡ª interrogate her. But, this is just my trembling heart speaking. She doesn¡¯t have the best personality, but now knowing she can do such a thing with mana. I think she is rather humble, some nobles would have a worse personality compared to the one they already have if they had such power. I look forward to seeing the academy report¡­ Wait¡­ She got a letter of recommendation, but does not have a mentor? I hope there is no problem with the registration. Well, just in case I think I should inform her.


    My steps came to a stop in the main hallway. I turned around and saw Gerard with an extremely pale complexion, but I did not really understand. I just gave him a weird look and started backtracking. I had to inform her after-all, although I could''ve sent Gerard to do it. I my mood was amazing, so I did it myself.


    ¡°My lord¡­¡± he quietly called for me, prompting me to look at him with an even more confused face. Gerard started trembling and then did a deep bow.


    ¡°I beg for forgiveness!¡± I became rather confused.


    ¡°About?¡± I just looked at him slightly twitch and lift himself up again.


    ¡°I-I made you question that girl¡­¡± Question? The banquet? Ah.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it,¡± I dismissed Gerard with a faint smile and continued walking.


    What he did was wrong, but it all worked out. I am surprised she did not do anything to Gerard when he mentioned pointing spears. I mean, depending on her attributes she could easily blow up this entire house. Seeing that manipulation correlates to how strong the spells you cast are. Now that I think about it, is she a high-level Archmage? That¡¯s hard to digest. I continued walking while thinking about useless things.


    ¡®Ah.¡¯ A dumb sound escaped my mouth as I saw the girls exiting the dining hall. Aizen was the first one to notice me. It seemed like her senses were sharp as ever. She had tilted her head with a puzzled look as she questioningly glanced at me.


    I coughed. ¡°Aizen, if you run into a problem regarding the academy registration. Let me know and I will see what I can do,¡± I quietly informed her. However, she just tilted her head.


    ¡°Can¡¯t I show up there and give them the letter?¡± What¡¯s with that logic.


    ¡°No?¡± I gave her a confused look.


    ¡°Then, can I ask you to help me already?¡± So bold!


    I just quietly nodded. She approached me and handed me a letter. It seemed like a normal recommendation letter; I took it from her hand and bid my farewells. Gerard parted my side and guided the girls to the guest rooms. I went into my office to get things ready. Besides, how could I sleep after being so excited? Better put the energy to use.


    * * *


    ?Aizen?


    Firil asked me about the magic academy thing and I gave him Dan¡¯s letter he went somewhere up-stairs. And now we were left with a pale butler; I kind of just quietly looked at him. Gerard stood there while fidgeting with his glove, he seemed rather nervous but I just continued to look at him; he really wasn''t talking. He breathed in and out and then looked at us fixedly.


    ¡°I will guide you to the guest rooms.¡±


    ¡°Umm¡­¡± Cecil quietly intervened. ¡°Can¡¯t they stay in my room?¡±


    ¡°... If that¡¯s what you wish.¡±


    Gerard seemed somewhat awkward but complied to Cecil''s request and guided us to her room. A problem emerged as soon as we entered, we had noticed something ¡ª there was only one bed. But I looked around some more and, actually; there was no problem. I had forgotten the ground was carpeted, and it seemed to be high-quality fabric.


    ¡°I will bring another be?¡ª¡°


    ¡°No need,¡± I interrupted Gerard.


    He gave me a weird look, but I just shook my head. He stiffened and quietly left the room. Cecil looked at the door with concern. But that did not matter to me. I scanned her room which seemed to be lit by some type of crystal on the roof. Well, the room was pretty okay, a desk and a bed, a few bookshelves filled to the brim with books. Kuro noticed the bookshelves and quietly scanned them as she approached them, she seemed to be looking for a book.


    ¡°Cecil, do you have any general knowledge books?¡± she suddenly asked.


    ¡°No?¡± She paused. ¡°All I have that would be considered ¡®general knowledge¡¯ would be a monster bo?¡ª¡° she paused yet again and looked at Fenri with sparkling eyes.


    ¡°Woof?¡± He tilted his head in reaction to the sudden atmosphere change.


    Cecil approached the bookshelf next to Kuro and started looking for something. She grabbed a black leather book with brown stripes on its spine. It seemed to be rather new seeing the black leather seemed soft and bright. She placed it on her desk and then looked at all of us with a smile of anticipation. I approached to see what was the whole book thing about. It did not take long before everyone was next to her looking at said book.


    She opened it, and it showed rather normal things. General monster knowledge and how to skin monsters, such as demon boars. Despite their name, they were probably the weakest of all monsters. She seemed to be looking for something until she let out an ¡®ah¡¯ sound as she found herself on a page. The title read ?¡ª ¡®Winter Wolf.¡¯ It did not take me more than a second to realize what she was looking for.


    Kuro quietly but with interest looked at the page and started reading. In spite of the incredibly well-drawn illustrations it just¡­ it did not look like Fenri at all. How to put it? It¡¯s like comparing a horned-dragon to a dragon that has wings. One is just a lizard and the other one is a flying lizard. Big difference. Anyways, the wolf in the page looked rather aggressive and savage. Meanwhile, Fenri normally had calm eyes and did not even growl. It was like comparing a dog to a wolf. Cecil seemed to have realized this and tilted her head.


    ¡°Yami, how come Fenri doesn¡¯t resemble his own species?¡±


    ¡°Now that I think about it, he really doesn¡¯t¡± Ari added.


    Kuro began scratching her face and looked at me, I shrugged. I had absolutely no idea about it, besides isn¡¯t Fenri max level and winter wolves like level one to ten? There is no comparison.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­¡± she sheepishly said as she averted her gaze and stared at the ground. I kind of understood her feeling, not knowing about your partner can be embarrassing.


    Cecil and Ari looked at her in disbelief. Fenri quietly started consoling his owner (Kuro) as he rubbed himself against her and tried to jump on her. Well, he didn¡¯t try, he slightly raised his front legs. but decided not to. Seeing Kuro was still in an awkward position because of Cecil and Ari; they were looking at her with disappointment. Fenri stared fixedly at her with slight pity. Before ultimately reconsidering his decision and decided it was best to jump on her.


    ¡°Wai?¡ª aah!¡± She let out a cute sound as she hit the ground.


    She started being lovingly groomed by Fenri, at first she was trying to move Fenri away but ended up laughing to the awkward situation. It was a rather unexpected development. Both of the girls were petrified. But I just looked at Fenri, he continued doing it, and continued¡­ I grew jealous and jumped at Kuro. She was also mine!


    ¡°Aizen!?¡±


    I couldn¡¯t care less about her being flustered, so I hugged her.  Fenri started licking both of us, it was fun.


    ¡°Ari, is it always like this?¡±


    ¡°Well, yes but actually no¡­ How do I put it? It¡¯s strange¡­¡±


    I heard a conversation in the background, but I did not catch on about what they were saying. I continued having fun with the weird wolf and Kuro. After a few minutes, it all ended and we were sitting together on Cecil¡¯s bed.


    ¡°Did Fenri always look like that? He doesn¡¯t really resemble the drawing,¡± Cecil quietly asked Yami. She scratched her cheek and looked at Fenri fixedly.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t remember him looking different, aside from not having bracelets¡­¡±


    ¡°... Now that I think about it, why does he have bracelets?¡± Ari suddenly asked.


    ¡°That is¡­ Well, they are important for Fenri,¡± she avoided the question and then quietly whispered a single word in Ari¡¯s ear. Her eyes widened for a brief moment before returning to normal.


    ¡°So, that¡¯s how it was¡­¡± Ari quietly murmured. Cecil did not pick up on it so, she thankfully did not ask more about it.


    I slept next to Fenri on the ground. Cecil gave me an extremely weird look, but I just told her something along the lines of ?¡ª ¡®Do you not sleep on the ground?¡¯ while tilting my head. She started fidgeting and did not ask about it. I knew no one really slept on the ground but it was funny seeing her reaction.


    * * *


    I was woken up by Kuro¡¯s shaking. It became so common that I gave up on being annoyed about it. Everyone seemed to have woken up. Gerard with a now normal complexion and way more relaxed than before had entered the room.


    ¡°Breakfast is ready.¡± After saying those words he left. It was a pretty brief moment, I just tilted my head in confusion.


    ¡°It¡¯s always like that,¡± Cecil quietly informed me seeing my reaction. I nodded in response, I did not really know noble stuff, but why not bring the breakfast to me? I mean, if you are already going into the room where I am, just to tell me that ¡ª breakfast is ready? Might as well just bring breakfast with you¡­


    We went downstairs and we were guided into the dining room. I still thought that such a big table was overkill. We had some bread and butter and eggs for some reason. Well, it was okay. I had never had eggs before, I wouldn¡¯t say they were bad but they weren¡¯t great either. Just acceptable.


    Firil was probably busy, seeing he was nowhere to be seen. As we were about to leave Gerard entered the room.


    ¡°Milady, may I ask you to come with me?¡± Cecil tilted her head.


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Well, you know¡­ We kind of need to file in another report with you and such¡­¡± he quietly informed her and, she quietly accepted it; going to Gerard after giving us her farewell. Kuro was absentmindedly thinking about something until she realized Gerard was leaving.


    ¡°Wait.¡± Gerard turned around and gave her a weird look.


    ¡°If we want to leave the mansion and then enter? ¡°


    ¡°Ah, I forgot.¡± Gerard came to us. ¡°Have this.¡± He handed Yami some type of metal plate with a crest on it.


    ¡°You should have no problems as long as you carry that card,¡± Gerard informed Kuro; who currently happened to have a confused look as she analyzed the card, it did resemble a card much. Gerard and Cecil left, Cecil seemed slightly sad having momentarily leave our side. Kuro pocketed the card and looked at us.


    ¡°Well, we need to go to the adventurers guild now.¡± We nodded.


    Ari and I just left the mansion with Kuro.


    We encountered a few nobles along the way. Some looked at us, tilted their heads and started questioning their house guards. Normally ¡ª the guard quietly shook his head and the noble started shouting at him. It wasn¡¯t like that for all the nobles, some of them quietly accepted the responses, but a lot of them seemed to have a short fuse.


    ¡°It¡¯s a rather common behaviour¡­¡± Ari dejectedly informed us.


    We reached the academy which actually had students now. I managed to see a sharp-gazed elf entering the building, although he did do something weird before entering.  It was quite far away, thankfully I have really good eyesight. It must have been the elf Cecil talked about. He did seem rather interesting, mostly because I noticed he bumped into a student and then chanted something before entering the building. The student fell to the ground and a few seconds later stood up with a confused look. The elf did not seem like the friendly type.


    ¡®Really interesting,¡¯ I excitedly muttered.


    ¡°Aizen?¡± Kuro suddenly gave me a questioning look.


    ¡°I was looking at the elf Cecil talked about,¡± I nonchalantly mentioned. She looked at the school, but the elf was long gone ?¡ª seeing there was no elf she awkwardly tilted her head.


    We resumed our walk and eventually, we exited the noble district. I did not notice before, but there were guards at the entrance. They looked bewildered by us, yet they did not approach us. I guess we were new faces. Kuro, on the other hand, approached one of the guards.


    ¡°Umm excuse me, where is the adventurer¡¯s guild?¡±


    ¡°Ah, it¡¯s over there  young missy.¡± Kuro stiffened but nodded to the indication.


    I chuckled seeing her reaction. She just gave me a piercing look, but I did not flinch. The reason to why Kuro had asked for directions was mostly because there were no guilds to be seen. The guard directed us north. It seemed like a really big street brimming with miscellaneous businesses. And there it was; an adventurer guild with an adventurer¡¯s shop next to it. The signboard said ¡®adventurer¡¯s shop¡¯ so there was no doubt about it.


    We quietly approached the guild and entered. No one really noticed us, and the ones that did just tilted their heads and went back to their conversation. It was rather nice not having people throw a tantrum in front of us every time we stepped into a guild. I also noticed people seemed slightly stronger, I could just tell by looking at them. We arrived in front of the receptionist.


    ¡°Hello, what can I do for you? Request, registration or would you like to place a request?¡± She quickly and professionally questioned Yami. She flinched slightly, I think it was because it was the most straight-forward receptionist we had seen so far.


    ¡°Umm¡­ We would like to submit a quest completion.¡± The receptionist nodded and accepted Yami¡¯s scroll. She opened it and started reading the contents until her eyes went wide.


    ¡°W-wait¡­ So, you are telling me, you girls were the only survivors of this hell quest?!¡± She seemed rather flustered. We just nodded not knowing what to say.


    ¡°What makes it a hell quest?¡± Ari suddenly asked.


    ¡°... It wasn¡¯t really a hell quest, but the merchant reported every single adventurer died in it; with only a single surviving group. He even reported that a gold-ranked adventurer died!¡± Hearing this, the entire guild fixed their gazes on us.


    ¡®Not this again...¡¯ I grumbled as I heard a chair screech and heavy steps.


    ¡°So you''re tellin¡¯ me ya girls are adven?¡ª¡° He froze. I could slightly sense his bloodlust. For some reason, it seemed to be some kind of trend to try to bully little girls. So I just did what I had to do before it got out of hand.


    ¡°Can we just get the quest completion?¡± Kuro suddenly asked.


    ¡°Ah, yes! Guild cards please¡­¡± The receptionist recovered and continued the process.


    We gave her our cards as requested. She used some type of magic and that was all; we started leaving the guild. We could not be bothered with useless quarrels anymore. Although everyone was either looking at us or at the frozen adventurer that seemed to be extremely drunk. Well, his eyes were now trembling in fear, so I guess that was a better change ?¡ª we left the guild without much problem.


    ¡°Wait!¡± Someone suddenly called for us as we were stepping into the main street.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 40) Oldie!

    Alice.


    ?Aizen?


    ¡°Wait!¡± Someone suddenly called for us as we were stepping into the main street. The voice was somewhat raspy.


    I turned around to see who it was. It was a dwarf that was about the same height as me. Silvery tangled hair and a long beard. He had really inflated arms and was wearing some type of leather apron. His appearance was kind of funny. Everyone else turned around to see what it was. I noticed Kuro opened her mouth and then turned around and coughed. I think she was about to laugh; she looked back at the dwarf.


    The dwarf seeing us stop came over to us somewhat hurriedly, and then stood in front of us looking at Kuro. It was odd. He was looking at her with a hint of suspicion and some disbelief. Then he proceeded to scan all of us. He glanced back at Kuro and scanned one last time; she flinched seeing his weird behaviour.


    ¡°I will need you girls to come with me,¡± he commanded in a somewhat raspy tone. I did not like him already. However, Kuro kind of just looked at him and tilted her head.


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Sigh¡­ Because I need to talk to you girls, privately. Unless of course, you would rather have problems with the craftsmen guild.¡±


    Kuro instantly stiffened, being attacked where it hurt. She ended up dejectedly nodding, I chose to follow seeing the situation seemed to be something to laugh at. If I had to bet, the only thing that has to do with her and the guild was that stupid dagger she made back in that town. Well, mistakes were made, now she suffers. I will look forward to it.


    We followed into the building in front of the adventurer¡¯s guild. The people inside looked at us fixedly seeing we were accompanying the dwarf. It was understandable seeing he was more than likely to be the Guildmaster. And sure enough, he guided us upstairs into his plain office. It had two couches and a table in the middle. We sat down across him. I stared at him with curiosity.


    ¡°Do you know why I brought you girls here?¡±


    ¡°Yes, but I still don¡¯t understand why we are all here. I mean.¡± I looked at Kuro. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t she be the only one here?¡± He flinched and then began thinking.


    ¡°... I am the one doing the questions!¡± he firmly said. But it was rather obvious he did a mistake there. He coughed. ¡°Well, I can assume you all know why you are here?¡±


    I nodded, Ari hesitantly nodded. Kuro was¡­ thinking. She just shook her head not being able to arrive at a plausible conclusion. The dwarf sighed.


    ¡°You are here because of this,¡± he said as he pulled a dagger blade.


    ¡°Hey, that¡¯s mine. I think¡­¡±


    ¡°Sure girly. You can have it back after we are done here.¡± The dwarf dismissed Kuro. For some reason, Kuro seemed dumber than usual. Well, I don¡¯t entirely understand her. She is pretty weird when it comes to materials and the like. However, I did not want to be stuck here.


    ¡°So, can you proceed old man?¡± I tiredly questioned, hearing me he frowned.


    ¡°Who are you calling old!? Besides, coming from a brat like you doesn¡¯t surprise me. Kids these days don¡¯t respect the elderly.¡± He turned bitter all of the sudden.


    I wanted to retort but I decided it was better to not turn it into an argument.


    ¡°So, what can I do for you?¡± Kuro hesitantly asked as she fidgeted. She seemed to have picked up on the situation. The dwarf sighed and narrowed his eyes looking at her.


    ¡°Well Girly, you are certainly skilled. Too skilled even. However, the reason you are here is because of this,¡± he pointed at the symbol on the dagger.


    ¡°Ah¡­¡±


    ¡° ''Ah'' what?! Do you understand what this means?¡±


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s just a symbol I etched into the weapon.¡±


    Seeing Kuro¡¯s reaction to the whole ordeal, the dwarf deeply frowned. I mean, I understand the symbol, but¡­ Honestly. Who cares? It¡¯s just a symbol. I understand it is well-known. But I assume it is rather commonly used. People tend to try to replicate things they admire after-all, the dwarf, on the other hand, did not think so.


    ¡°Girly¡­ Is this a joke?!¡±


    She shook her head.


    ¡°Do you think faking someone else¡¯s signature is a joke?! That man out of all people!?¡± he sighed. ¡±Regardless you are now officially forbidden from using this symbol on your works,¡± he firmly stated. However, the response he got was unexpected.


    ¡°You are forbidding me from using my own symbol?! Have you gone senile old man!¡± Kuro snapped; glaring daggers at the dwarf who was now stunned. Ari had wide-open eyes. I chuckled from the unexpected reaction. Kuro quickly realized what she just said and sat quietly sat down and turned docile.


    ¡°Actually¡­ that¡¯s fine¡­¡±


    ¡°I-Is that so¡­¡± The dwarf was rather flustered.


    However, I remember Kuro changing her name to Yami because of not wanting to be known. I decided to help out with the rather situation by clapping my hands. Everyone¡¯s attention gathered at me.


    "Now that¡¯s solved. Using a symbol that does not belong to you K-Yami¡­ I am disappointed..." I gave her a quick glance. "Well, regardless. I can see why you would want to use that deadman¡¯s symbol.¡± I chuckled and Kuro flinched hearing me. Ari became confused just as I had planned. The dwarf awkwardly nodded.


    ¡°Well, we can leave now.¡± Dismissed.


    ¡°S-stop¡­¡±


    As we stood up from my command the dwarf hurriedly called for us. Yami looked at the dwarf with interest and the dwarf reciprocated.


    ¡°Miss, could you join the craftsmen guild?!¡± The dwarf excitedly asked, he also handed the dagger at Yami as she pondered for a bit. She really did, I saw her flinch and shudder a few times as she was immersed in her thoughts. In the end, she just smiled.


    ¡°I will think about it.¡±


    After she gave that response we left the room ?¡ª leaving a flabbergasted dwarf behind. We were on the upstairs corridor, however, Ari gripped Kuro¡¯s hand and looked at her fixedly. Then Ari quickly and desperately guided us to an empty office room. We were still on the second floor.


    * * *


    ?Ari?


    As soon as we left the Guildmaster¡¯s office I grabbed Yami¡¯s hand and got her into a random room that was empty. This was weird and I really wanted to know what happened there.


    ¡°Explain,¡±


    ¡°A-About?¡±


    Yami seemed nervous, probably due to my cold voice. But, I just narrowed my eyes.


    ¡°How is it your symbol exactly?¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    She blankly stared at me and began fidgeting. At that moment I noticed I turned rather hostile. What was the point in all of this? What am I even doing? Does it really matter if it¡¯s her symbol or not? Does it matter if she wants to make it her symbol? She is the disciple of that person after all. Yami took a deep breath.


    ¡°Well, you see Ari. I?¡ª¡°


    I made her stop by shaking my head. ¡°¡­ I am sorry, it really doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s your symbol or not. It must be rough having to deal with someone like that dwarf.¡± I quietly informed her.


    However, I noticed she froze and looked at Aizen, who just giggled slightly. She looked rather amused seeing Yami¡¯s odd behaviour. But that did not really matter. The more I looked at Yami the more she fidgeted and the more her mouth trembled, she averted her gaze towards the ground. I kind of felt bad now. But I had no idea what I had done, and she suddenly seemed to have gotten really nervous.


    ¡°Yami I am sorry¡­ I did not mean to¡­¡± Why was I even apologizing?


    Yami sniffled and wiped away the tear coming from her eye. I looked back at Aizen who was now frozen. It looked like it was out of her prediction scope. I turned back to Yami who was still quietly looking at the ground. She then looked at me right in the eyes.


    ¡°Ari, I want you to listen carefully,¡± I slowly and awkwardly nodded. ¡°I am¡­ I am¡­ I am the [Master Craftsman]...¡± She told me with hesitation yet unmoving eyes.


    I kind of just stood there and continued looking at her. I did not know how to react. I looked back at Aizen and she was now looking at the wall while scratching her head. I started thinking of the information she just told me. Disciple to master? Hmm¡­ This is rather¡­ Weird. I don¡¯t know how to put it or react. Yami does have weird items and such. But the master craftsman? I doubt my fate would cross with someone like that, besides wasn''t the master craftsman male and from the human race? I don''t see the point.


    ¡°I see¡­¡± I looked at her. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you don¡¯t need to lie to me.¡±


    She flinched and took a step back, and looked at me in shock and disbelief. She then looked at Aizen ?¡ª seeking for help. However, Aizen just looked at her with cold eyes and averted her gaze. I did not know what to say or do. It all turned super weird so I kind of just looked at the peaceful and calm ground instead.


    ¡°Tch, brats these days! Where are my documents?!¡± A dwarf entered the room. It was the Guildmaster. He looked at all of us who were now looking at him. He scanned again. Seeing we were looking at him fixedly he just closed the door again. A few seconds of silence went by.


    ¡°Wait! Why am I even the one leaving!¡± The dwarf entered the room once again. ¡°You girls. Your business is done here, leave now!¡±


    ¡°Shut up old man,¡± It was a female and cold voice. I have never heard it before. I looked at Aizen who now had scary eyes. I tried to not look at her.


    ¡°Who are you calling old?! I am only ninety! Besides, what does a little girl like you know about being old!? Brats these days!¡±


    ¡°Just ninety?! Don¡¯t make me laugh. If you want to match me you have to at least be deep into the three digits...¡±


    The dwarf staggered. I looked back at Aizen who was now standing on top of the desk, it seemed like she used the high-ground to look down on the already short dwarf. The dwarf shook his fist in rage.


    ¡°I the Great Smith Alron won¡¯t be mocked like this!¡±


    ¡°Great Smith!?¡± she sneered. ¡°If you want to be worth my time at least bring the Master Craftsman.¡± For some reason, Aizen seemed rather awkward. Did it have to do with the interaction earlier? I don''t really understand Aizen¡¯s past. So I found it weird. I heard a sweet but monotone voice next to me.


    ¡°She got mad earlier and now she is just¡­ Unestressing herself.¡±


    I tilted my head at Yami¡¯s declaration, she also seemed to have normalized herself.


    ¡°How did she get mad from that?¡± I looked back at Yami who had just started scratching her cheek.


    ¡°Well¡­ It¡¯s complicated. Let¡¯s just say that I made a mistake a while back...¡± She quietly dismissed my question, but I guess it was Yami¡¯s fault. I thought for a few seconds before I looked back at the quarrel between children. They had stopped shouting at each other for a bit.


    "Grrr... You are respectable girly. But I won¡¯t falter!¡±


    ¡°You won¡¯t defeat me like this old man!¡±


    My eyes turned into two round dots. Yami followed my line of sight and her expression became the same. They were playing some type of tabletop game that they had gotten out of nowhere. I did not really understand. Never seen one like that before. The board was a stone board that was rounded and it used pebbles that slotted into small holes. It seemed like some type of strategy game.


    ¡°Tch, I would have never thought a girly like you would know about this game¡­¡± he admitted as he grit his teeth. Aizen just formed a smirk.


    ¡°Well, of course! Who do you think I am! I am the Leg?¡ª OUCH!¡± Aizen rubbed her temple as she stopped her speech. I did not see anything other than a loud sound that rang across the room.


    Aizen looked at Yami and so did I. She was¡­ scary. I think she threw something at Aizen but my vision did not pick it up. I don¡¯t understand why she made her pause her monologue. I guess Yami was not so normalized after-all. I looked back at the table; the stone board game was not progressing. However, Aizen went into thinking and then nodded as if having understood why she got something thrown at her. Then she looked back at Yami.


    ¡°That makes two¡­ Just you wait¡­¡± Aizen informed Yami in a somewhat scary voice.


    Yami shrugged. Meanwhile, I had no idea what was happening, neither did the dwarf. Aizen turned back to the playing board like if nothing had ever happened; her eyes sparkled. She moved a green pebble somewhere close to the dwarf''s blue pebble in front of him.


    ¡°I win!¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    The dwarf was silently gritting his teeth.


    ¡°Fine girly! You win. I will acknowledge you! Here¡­¡± He dejectedly handed some type of small coin. It did not look like currency but it was coin-shaped. It was a black coin with something embedded on it.


    Aizen stood up and walked over to us and then placed it into Kuro¡¯s hand.


    ¡°You can thank me later,¡± she said in a cool voice and then left the room and continued walking down the hallway. We just stood there frozen. I heard hurried footsteps in the and then Aizen stood in the doorway. Silently watching us and judging us¡­ I think we were supposed to follow her.


    And like that, we got the Guildmaster Alron as an acquaintance somehow. Apparently, it was some type of old game that the dwarf bet on Aizen. With something along the lines of: ¡®Fine girly! Have it your way! Let¡¯s play a game instead, or are you afraid of the old?¡¯ his mocking lines backfired and he ended up losing on the bet.

 (Chpt. 41) Finding unexpected trouble.

    Alice.


    ?Yami?


    Hmm¡­ I am in quite a predicament¡­ Ari thought I was joking in spite of me telling her the truth. I mean, how am I supposed to react about being forbidden from using my own symbol?! It¡¯s the same as accusing the inventor of something for plagiarism and then punishing them. It¡¯s just not right¡­ I am still mad about that¡­


    Aizen got mad at me probably because the lie went too far. If Ari wants to think that way then there is no helping it. I am more amused by the fact that the Guildmaster and Aizen ended up playing a board game to solve their issues. Aizen won and gave me a coin that gives me especial permissions or something like that. She did not say much.


    Also to believe she almost called herself Legendary Dragon in front of the Guildmaster! Why would you do that!? Wouldn¡¯t that be framed as heresy or something?! It¡¯s basically the same as me claiming to be the Demon Lord! It just does not work¡­ Pity that I threw the first thing that I thought about. Rest in peace dagger that I just got back¡­ I don¡¯t know what happened to it. But, I did not see it again¡­


    ¡°Yami are you coming?¡±


    Ari looked at me as we were standing at the entrance of the guild. I just nodded and continued walking. We found ourselves in the main street. It was way more crowded than before. It looked really busy and I could barely see the other side. I grabbed Ari¡¯s hand and Aizen grabbed mine.


    ¡°Eh!¡± A high-pitched voice came from somewhere¡­ Then a receptionist hurriedly ran in front of us.


    ¡°Could you girls come with me?¡± Seeing it was a receptionist''s trouble face we just nodded.


    She guided us to the Adventurers'' Guild. People stared at us and the guy from before flinched for some reason. I guess turning into a statue is quite weird¡­ Although I wonder why do people try to attack us in the middle of the guild. Hmm¡­


    The receptionist guided us to the second floor and into the Guildmaster room. We took a seat on an available sofa and patiently waited.


    ¡°Why are we even here?¡± Aizen asked as always.


    ¡°Well¡­ I don¡¯t really know either, but seeing it¡¯s our only way to make money, I think it¡¯s fine to follow the receptionist to somewhere like this¡­¡± I silently answered Aizen. Ari nodded along with me. So Aizen just decided absentmindedly look at the ceiling.


    ¡°Hey Ku-Yami. Why did you throw something at me back then? I think I know the answer, but I want to hear your reason.¡±


    ¡°Aizen¡­ We cannot have you claim to be a dragon in front of people¡­¡±


    Aizen nodded. ¡°I figured¡­¡±


    Ari just sat there looking at the table. Not really saying anything. We waited and waited. A few minutes went by and the door opened. There stood a somewhat tall and slender man with green eyes and blonde hair, he also had golden-framed glasses and pointy ears. It was an elf with a bit of a secretary vibe, he was also carrying some documents


    He scanned the room. as soon as he noticed us he flinched. We tilted our heads due to the weird behaviour he displayed. He awkwardly left the room and I heard hurried steps and some door opening on the hallway. Then he came back with a sweaty forehead and sat down in front of us, he started reading documents.


    ¡°Aizen and Yami correct?¡± We nodded. ¡°So, this other girl isn¡¯t an adventurer?¡± We nodded again. ¡°I see. Well, looking at these documents. It seems you girls registered as adventurers about a week ago in Mirl. But, we don¡¯t have documents for anything else about you. You know like family and such¡­¡± Well of course. I kind of just found myself here with my inventory¡­


    ¡°I cannot intervene in you girls¡¯ circumstances so I won¡¯t pry about documentation. However, what I am here today is to discuss.¡± he paused. Discuss what? ¡°You see, your group is very peculiar. Taking into account the fact that you girls registered recently, taking zero requests of your rank. Taking a horned-dragon subjugation and a blue escort request in which everyone died but you.¡± He narrowed his eyes. ¡°That¡¯s very suspicious.¡±


    ¡°Get to the point,¡± Aizen said in a somewhat annoyed tone.


    ¡°Well, we believe you girls are either experienced adventurers and registered again, which is against the guild rules. Or there is something else. So, we would like to confirm your status with an appraisal stone.¡±


    ¡°Denied.¡± I firmly said.


    ¡°You cannot refuse or the guild will take measures.¡±


    ¡°Well, you have been refused elf. We are not experienced adventurers and showing our status would be bad for all of us.¡± Aizen nonchalantly informed him.


    The elf hearing this raised his brow.


    ¡°Why would it be bad for all of us?¡±


    Aizen thought for a second before nodding. ¡°Well. What would happen if someone had an outrageous status? Higher than a Mithril ranked adventurer?¡± Aizen asked. Ari had a sour face, I did not say anything. However, the elf just chuckled. Aizen displayed a smile hearing him chuckle; she had planned to ask something that dumb.


    ¡°That¡¯s impossible. After all, we know all of the strong people in the kingdom.¡±


    ¡°Then there is no problem. I just want to ask ¡ª with the appraisal stone. How much of our status will it know?¡±


    The elf pondered for a second.


    ¡°It should only be able to see your level and classes,¡± he said with a smile.


    ¡°And once you know that, what will you do?¡± Aizen continued questioning.


    ¡°Either reassign your rank, or let you go.¡±


    ¡°I see¡­ Just bring the stone, I will be the one that places her hand.¡±


    ¡°Wait, Aizen?!¡± I looked at her in disbelief.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry K-Yami, your classes are safe with me.¡± She gave me a bitter smile. I couldn¡¯t help but look at the ground. I was upset. The elf left the room and brought a red stone when he entered again.  He looked at Aizen.


    ¡°Please, touch the stone¡­¡±


    Aizen slightly flinched but proceeded to touch it. Then she shivered and retracted her hand. The elf took the stone and placed it over a paper, said paper shone and stuff began to be written on the paper. I only saw two lines be written. He then took the paper and read it and his eyes went wide-open.


    ¡°Is that what you wanted?¡± Aizen asked.


    ¡°H-How,¡± Aizen flinched as she was going to open her mouth the elf frantically shook his hand in a hurry. He seemed panicked.


    He breathed in and out for a while until he finally calmed his rushing heart. He sighed. ¡°I can see why you girls were reluctant about this whole ordeal. Especially looking at missy over here, those eyes have seen the death of thousands after all¡­¡± He was looking at Aizen, Aizen flinched from the weird comment.


    ¡°Seeing the peculiar situation I will just pretend as if nothing happened.¡± He tore the sheet of paper and broke the stone by smashing it into the table. ¡°I would rather stay alive than pretending to follow rules¡­ To believe I would find the rumored dragon girl¡­¡±


    ¡°Dragon girl?¡± Ari and I asked.


    ¡°Well¡­ There was a time in which a lone girl single-handedly destroyed around three kingdoms using forbidden magic. While she claimed to be the all-grand and only king of dragons. One of the survivors confirmed her status, and now we are here. It has been a few decades since it happened, most people forget, but us elves don¡¯t¡­ So, I would rather live. I am still too young.¡±  He calmly explained himself to us with sweat dripping down his forehead.


    I nodded, Ari paused and glared at Aizen who was scratching her cheek.


    ¡°Any other reason to why we were here?¡± I asked. The elf flinched and then averted his gaze. He started mumbling something to himself.


    ¡°Actually¡­ You were scheduled for a promotion to silver rank¡­ But, I thought it was too suspicious despite the orders coming from the guildmaster himself. I as the vice-Guildmaster had to confirm¡­¡± Aizen gave him a death-glare. To be fair I would be upset too.


    ¡°I see. Come closer please.¡± Aizen gestured with a cold voice. The elf gulped and got close to her. Aizen grabbed his head and then he fainted. She let the elf¡¯s limp body rest on the sofa.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Aizen, what did you do?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s better if he forgets everything, no?¡± I nodded¡­ Ari nodded¡­


    ¡°Ughh¡­¡± The elf groaned and looked at us. Then at his documents. He quickly recovered and looked at all of us.


    ¡°You girls are suspicious, I will need to test you¡­¡± He said as he held his head in pain.


    ¡°That¡¯s a lie, the Guildmaster told me why we were here.¡± Aizen coldly commanded the elf with a lie. The elf staggered hearing her as if having his plan exposed. Well, Aizen¡¯s ability is quite useful here. Better to not have people know about us. The elf thought for a second and read his documents once again.


    ¡°Well¡­ the guildmaster did say to promote both of the adventurers in this room¡­¡± He was muttering while looking at the ground. I managed to hear everything. He looked at the shattered table stone.


    ¡°What¡¯s that stone?¡±


    We froze¡­ Aizen, on the other hand, had a smirk plastered on her face.


    ¡°It was an appraisal stone that you broke, that¡¯s why you fainted.¡± The elf looked at it in doubt and then let out a gasp.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe I forgot about the fact that I brought it into the room... Then I woke up after the shock from breaking it¡­ No wonder why I was so confused. Thank you girly.¡± He then left the room.


    I looked at Aizen with doubt etched on my face. This couldn''t be just making someone forget something...


    ¡°Are you sure that¡¯s not brainwashing?¡± Ari staggered hearing me and looked at Aizen in fear. Aizen looked back at me to try to deny it, however, her gaze landed on Ari; she was looking at her as if she did not know her. Aizen realized this and froze.


    ¡°No it isn¡¯t, well it is, but it isn¡¯t...¡± Aizen held her head in pain as she tried to deny it but admitting it at the same time. She seemed flustered. After a few seconds, she lifted her head and looked over to Ari. ¡°I am not what you think¡­¡± she said with an extremely disappointed tone. Ari grew nervous as well.


    Wait, did she react like that because of Aizen¡¯s ability? How unexpected. Aizen is afraid of Ari not wanting to interact with her¡­ Well, it is something I had already guessed. It was kind of the same for the Ari too. She looked at Aizen and then nodded.


    ¡°I will forgive you, this time¡­ just don¡¯t brainwash people. It¡¯s evil...¡± Ari softly informed her.


    ¡°Thank you¡­¡± Aizen rushed to Ari and hugged her. She had red eyes as she tightly hugged Ari. Well, I guess that solves the slight problem.


    The elf entered the room and then paused as he saw two girls hugging each other. He saw me and then sat down.


    ¡°Ehem¡­ I hate to interrupt you. But, here is your new rank.¡± He handed me two adventurer tags ?¡ª they were silver colored with a lot of engraving and stuff. They looked way cleaner and better compared to the copper ones. The elf stood up and headed towards the door, which made me look at him.


    ¡°You aren¡¯t going to take the Copper ones?¡± The elf chuckled as he turned towards me.


    ¡°No, you can keep them as a souvenir. Your information has been updated, so it¡¯s not like you can use them. We have everything documented. Just keep that in mind.¡± He left after saying that.


    I sat there, watching Aizen hug Ari. Ari was patting Aizen, I think she was whispering something at Ari earlier but I did not hear it because I was paying attention at the elf. Oh well. Silver ranked adventurer now¡­ At least we are still not high-ranked. I don¡¯t want people coming over to me and praising me. Especially because everyone seems to try to show what rank they are constantly. It seems troublesome¡­


    I gave Aizen a few more minutes before standing up and looking at both of them.


    ¡°We have to go¡­¡±


    ¡°¡°... Nn¡­¡±¡± They reluctantly nodded.


    I handed Aizen her tag. We left the room and met the elf again there. He waved at us as we left.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 42) Tea thoughts and test.

    Alice.


    ?Yami?


    We left the adventurers¡¯ guild building. Which looked exactly the same as the craftsmen guild one. The street had a bit less turmoil so it was easy to see the other side. I was looking at the other guild building which was across the street and saw a rather familiar face coming out of it ?¡ª wrinkled face and white hair, wearing gloves and a suit. It was Gerard. He noticed me as well and hurriedly came in front of us.


    ¡°Milady was looking for all of you.¡±


    He bowed and then left back to the mansion.


    ¡°Just one sentence?¡±


    ¡°Looks like it¡­¡±


    Aizen seemed somewhat disappointed with that interaction. I couldn¡¯t help but agree with her. Ari also nodded in agreement.


    ¡°Should we go back to the mansion?¡± I asked Ari and Aizen; they both nodded.


    We backtracked back to the mansion and stood before the guards outside the noble residential area. Who were looking at us.


    ¡°We saw you girls coming outside, but we must ask you girls for identification¡­¡± One of the guards reluctantly informed us.


    identification? Identification¡­ Identific?¡ª Is it like the weird metal card that Gerard gave me? I reached out into my cloak and pulled it out, and showed it to the guard. He looked at it and nodded ?¡ª without saying a word he let us pass through.


    ¡°How convenient,¡± I murmured.


    We continued walking. Unlike before; the houses did not have people outside. I did see some fancy looking carriages here and there. But most of the houses only had the guards outside. Who waved at us. We just waved back every-time. They always smiled after we waved back ?¡ª for some reason.


    After some more walking, we stood before the familiar daunting mansion. The guard noticed us.


    ¡°Oh, you girls are back?¡± He paused. ¡°I am sorry about being so casual¡­ seeing you are guests of honor and all of that. I am just not that good at formal things¡­¡± he dejectedly apologized as he opened the gate.


    ¡°Don¡¯t mind it.¡±


    After saying that, we entered the mansion again. The first thing I saw was¡­ Some of the staff and Cecil playing with Fenri. I kind of wondered where he was¡­ Turns out he was on the mansion the entire time¡­ Fenri noticed us and rolled back on his legs and hurriedly came to greet me.


    ¡°woof.¡±


    ¡°Yes, woof woof. I like you too.¡±


    I knelt with a smile and lovingly patted him. His eyes glittered and then rubbed himself against me. I heard the maids and butlers chatter among themselves seeing me. But I did not mind it. After a few more seconds of love for Fenri, I stood up. Before I realized, Cecil was standing in front of me.


    ¡°Why did you leave?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ We kind of had to go to the guild.¡±


    ¡°You know¡­ You could¡¯ve just waited¡­¡±


    Cecil seemed somewhat upset about it.


    ¡°We did leave Fenri¡­¡± I tried coming with a lame excuse for it.


    ¡°... Uuu, okay. I will forgive you just because he is cute¡­¡± she reluctantly said in defeat. Cecil seemed to have been behaving more like her age now. Which I thought made her cuter.


    We went back to the guest room, seeing it was the most spacious room out of all the rooms that I knew about (inside the mansion). So I sat on the couch, Aizen followed. Ari and Cecil were playing with Fenri. I noticed the maid from yesterday came into the room and served us tea. She also gave me a teacup filled with sugar cubes¡­ I looked at it and gave the maid a quick glance. She just smiled.


    ¡®Looks like I won¡¯t be needing sugar for a while.¡¯ I quietly murmured as I placed the cup on the table. Surprisingly, Aizen grabbed a cube and placed it on her tea. I think she wanted to try something else. She took a sip ¡ª her eyes shot open and her mouth crumpled. She put her finger inside her tea and instantly burned all of it.


    ¡°Can I have a new cup?¡± She gently asked the maid. The maid came and took her teacup. She looked at the teacup and instantly froze. I managed to slightly see the teacup before she gave it to the maid. It¡¯s inside was completely charred¡­ The bewildered maid left, she came back with a new cup and gave it to Aizen.


    Aizen manually served herself more tea and took a sip. I saw a pleasant smile form on her face¡­ I decided to drink my tea without sugar. It was too bitter¡­ Sugar it is! After adding some sugar and taking a sip. Aizen gave me a look of hatred, but I wasn¡¯t planning on having a discussion on ?¡ª whether tea with or without sugar is better. I guess milk was an option but they never gave us some.


    After finishing my teacup and placing it on the table, I looked at the white ceiling.


    I wonder¡­ We did everything to do today, and frankly, I don¡¯t feel like checking the smithing market right now¡­ It¡¯s probably better to check it alone. You know, to not bother Ari and Aizen, I think it¡¯s better to not drag them with me on a quest for useless metal. As much as I hate to admit it, I don¡¯t even need metal. But I might find something interesting, you never know¡­


    ¡°Yami why are you smiling like that?¡± Ari suddenly asked.


    ¡°Ah¡­ Nothing¡­ By the way, Ari, do you want to go to the magic academy?¡± I decided to ask. She just shook her head.


    I figured. Well, it was something I had to ask. Firil did ask about it after all. I kind of just forgot to ask her. But, now I don¡¯t feel like I am forgetting something.


    * * *


    ?Aizen?


    Seriously... How does Kuro drink that much-condensed sugar! Disgusting... and now looking at her she has that stupid smile¡­ I bet she is thinking about useless rocks again¡­ Her smile became bigger¡­ Yep, useless minerals and rocks¡­ Sigh¡­ Can¡¯t you be more normal!? I know I am not the one that should be judging. Seeing I did play along with that old man¡­


    ¡°Ehem¡­¡± Someone coughed. I looked at the entrance of the room. Gerard was standing there. Once he had gathered all of our attention he started speaking.


    ¡°My lord has instructed me to help you girls register into the magic academy. Only the ones that are going to go shall come.¡± I petrified. I was going to go alone! Not alone¡­


    I felt someone grab my hand. It was a warm and soft yet rough feeling. I looked at the hand. It had a glove. It was Kuro. I looked at her.


    ¡°It will be alright.¡±


    I slowly nodded to her reassurance. I felt someone grab my other hand, it was gentler but still warm. I looked at the small hand. It was Ari. She nodded when I matched her eyes.


    ¡®¡­ There is nothing to worry about is there?¡¯ With those thoughts, I stood up and went to Gerard. He looked around and no one else followed. I felt a little bit awkward and vulnerable due to the things that happened in general.


    ¡°I will be on your care¡­¡± After those words came out of my mouth everyone looked at me in disbelief¡­ I figured¡­ I was feeling kind of weird and gentle from being reassured by Kuro and Ari.


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s go¡­¡± He leaned closer to me and whispered. ¡°I must grab your hand for some odd reason¡­ Please forgive me.¡± He stood up and grabbed my hand like a parent and child. I got somewhat annoyed but seeing he did inform me beforehand I did not say anything.


    ¡°We will be going,¡± Gerard informed everyone on the room. We left and exited the mansion. It was somewhat uncomfortable as the guard greeted us. He gave me a weird look but quickly nodded as if having understood what it meant. We continued heading towards the academy.


    ¡°Is this necessary?¡± I tiredly asked.


    ¡°I am sorry¡­ But it is¡­ I must hold your hand because otherwise you will be seen as a commoner¡¯s child that wandered off too far. Noble children around here are usually accompanied by a butler, and before you say anything¡­ If they think you are a commoner¡¯s child we would be in big trouble,¡± he firmly informed me. I did miss the part in which I did not necessarily have to hold his hand, I was too busy thinking.


    I see¡­ Well, I guess there is nothing more to it. Sigh¡­ But now I am alone with Gerard ?¡ª I can kind of understand why he pointed spears at us initially but did he call us psychos because of? It probably has to do with the mana thing.


    ¡°Gerard, when we met you.¡± He stopped walking and became stiff. ¡°Did you call us psychopaths because of the mana thing?¡± I calmly asked. He looked at me.


    ¡°Yes¡­ I did¡­ But, I am truly sorry about that.¡± When one would hear those words they would sound hollow. However, Gerard did sound incredibly regretful so I nodded in response to him.


    ¡°I understand why you did it. So, don¡¯t worry about it. We can go now.¡± I informed my thoughts to Gerard seeing he was not moving. He nodded and we continued walking.


    The nobles did not look as mad as earlier today when seeing me and Gerard. I guess it made sense for him to hold my hand. It was warm because of the glove ?¡ª seeing it felt nice I stopped caring about it. I absentmindedly followed Gerard until we were in front of the snowfield.


    It was the academy, or ''snowfield''. It was an eyesore in my opinion. I don¡¯t know what Kuro thought about it when she first saw it. We walked the paved white floor and then went to the left building. Unlike the exterior, the interior had wooden walls and carpeted blue floor. It looked a lot better and was more relaxed on the eyes.


    The first thing I saw was a reception desk with a smooth rock top, and behind the aforementioned desk,  there was a blue-haired receptionist wearing some robe. If she wasn¡¯t doing paperwork I wouldn¡¯t have thought she was the receptionist. Gerard approached her while still holding my hand. So he dragged me along with him. The receptionist felt us and raised her head.


    ¡°What can I do for you?¡±


    ¡°I would like to enroll this child.¡± Gerard informed her. She then turned to look at me and nodded. But I had questions.


    ¡°Were the buildings always an eyesore?¡± Hearing this she just looked at me and chuckled.


    ¡°You will get used to it.¡± She playfully informed me. I still had one more question.


    ¡°Do you always use detection magic?¡± I mean, she was the receptionist. Was there a need for something like that? Hearing me, she laughed and then nodded as she looked at me with sparkling eyes. Then turned to Gerard.


    ¡°You can leave now.¡±


    Hearing this Gerard nodded and left. I was now alone with some crazy lady.


    ¡°What an interesting girl! Detecting the detection magic! Hahaha?¡ª¡± She joyously laughed at her pitiful joke for a few seconds. ¡°Well, as interesting as you are. I still need to take you to the director for the test.¡± She grabbed my hand without prior warning. I immediately frowned but she did not notice.


    She then took me to some type of capsule and pressed a few buttons on the wall. The capsule started moving upwards. Was it an elevator? Well, I don¡¯t really care. However, she did say ''test''.


    ¡°What kind of test is it?¡± I decided to ask.


    ¡°Oh, you know. Just a verbal test about magic and such,¡± she nonchalantly informed me. I just nodded. If it was just general knowledge then I guess there is no problem. Attribute test might be bad. But seeing there was no need for that I guess I don¡¯t have to worry about such things.


    The capsule stopped on a floor and we exited it. I looked at the window to my side I think we were on the top floor just judging from the height we were at. We walked through the long hallway filled with doors until we reached a pair of red double doors. There was also a plant next to each door. The place looked kind of plain aside from the occasional plant here and there; some art as well. But nothing remarkable.


    The receptionist happily yanked my hand as I was watching the plants and placed her hand on one of the knobs.

 (Chpt. 43) The test of a Grand Mage

    Alice.


    ?Aizen?


    ¡°Welcome¡­¡± A raspy voice resounded throughout the hallway as the creaking door opened. The door opened and the blue-haired receptionist just shoved me inside and then immediately slammed the doors behind me. The room was kind of the same except it had a really big window behind the desk; showing a really pretty lake landscape behind as well as the whiteish castle. What got my attention was the man sitting behind the desk.


    Wearing a pointy hat and a faint smile. Wrinkles that made his eyes slightly drop and his mouth cave in. A stubby nose and surprisingly no white long beard. Just a few white hairs below his hat as I could not see his hairstyle. He was looking at me fixedly with a spark of interest, but he seemed to be oddly happy for some reason. As his stupid smile did not vanish.


    ¡°Welcome. Young student, or rather. Future student. Please take a seat.¡± I sat in front of him in one of the available chairs as per instructed.


    ¡°Weren¡¯t you going to do a test?¡±


    I decided to ask the first thing that came to mind. Seeing the receptionist did mention it, I haven''t even taken the test and the geezer is already calling me a student in this school. Weird. I sent him an inquisitive gaze but he did not really react to it. He just kept his stupid face as he fiddled with a pen on his desk. A plaque that read ¡°Mr. Lynn¡± stood there, next to it there was a potted plant with nice rounded leaves.


    The old man thought for a second and then lightly chuckled.


    ¡°You are quite desperate aren¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°... No, not really. But, you can¡¯t really drag me into here telling me I need to do a test and then not do one.¡± I simply explained to him, making him nod in the process.


    ¡°You are quite right indeed young one. Then, I have a single question." he narrowed his eyes. "What is magic for you?¡±


    I sneered; It was a rather obvious thing. ¡°A tool to protect my loved ones and send appropriate punishment to those worthy of it," I said with pride. He seemed to be expecting a bit more. I thought for a second, what was magic truly for me? "Absolute control over the situation; having people acknowledge you as a higher existence, a source of respect! Among others¡­¡± I got a bit derailed there, I ended up speaking what I used to think of magic for the past hundred years instead...


    ¡°Fufufu. What an interesting explanation! I normally hear things like ?¡ª ¡®It¡¯s a privilege!¡¯ or humble things. While you did carry a bit of the privilege and self-righteousness as others.¡± I flinched, being compared¡­ ¡°You do seem to have different motives in comparison to those people. I like that.¡±


    ¡°However, that¡¯s not what magic is about¡­¡± He said as he was mocking me. After those words came out of his mouth. His body became a dark silhouette and everything became enveloped in darkness. It was like being in a void. I had seen this magic before. It was meant to give an eerie and creepy atmosphere. I kind of just absentmindedly looked at him, or rather, in his direction.


    ¡°Do you finally understand young one!?¡± He let out this grandiose voice of joy, trying to make me realize something. I just picked my nose. It was getting boring. I mean, what''s so special about the I-am-so-cool darkness effect? Wasn''t that what Kuro looked like anyways? All dressed in black and stuff. I am glad that her clothes are normal now, otherwise, I would feel shame following her around. Well, I still feel a bit of pity for her, but that''s for her to fix. However, thinking about Kuro was not the right time. I had to pay attention to the mage.


    ¡°Not really¡­ What¡¯s the point of using such a useless magic anyways?¡± I nonchalantly said as I poked the darkness with some mana. The spell became undone seconds later, I wasn''t really sure if he manually removed it or I caused a change. It was a very sensitive spell after-all. The old man seemed to be thinking about something so I just watched him. Then he started looking at the table and murmuring something before turning back to me.


    ¡°... What an interesting young one.¡± he paused. ¡°Do you perhaps have the Mage class already?¡± I just nodded. I saw a smile bloom on his face. ¡°Ah¡­ Looks like this old man forgot¡­¡± He started rummaging below his desk as he moved various objects around. Until he pulled out a sheet of paper and a pair of glasses. He began reading it and then nodded.


    ¡°Yes¡­ Looks like I forgot. It was already written here.¡± He then showed me an envelope. It was Dan¡¯s letter. After doing so, he just laughed and continued ¡°To believe that person would recommend someone¡­¡±


    I was surprised for a somewhat different reason; to think the geezer knew Dan. I wonder what kind of relationship Dan has with this annoying old-man. I mean I don''t mind it, but I do not advocate for using magic to try to "enlighten" people. What''s the point of making them freakout and cry from insanity using a darkness spell? Funny how Neutral is forbidden but Darkness isn''t. Well, I am getting slightly derailed. I wonder about Dan.


    ¡°Is Dan special or something?¡± I asked out of interest.


    ¡°Kind of,¡± he casually said.


    ¡°Is it like, a girl that tries to be a boy and has depression because no one believes she is a boy?¡± I still had my doubts about it. I noticed the old man quickly turned around and his breathing quickened for a second before coughing.


    ¡°It¡¯s different¡­ Although I guess he is special in looks too¡­¡± he said as he was trying to not laugh. I guess that was enough. Now into what I wonder about.


    ¡°I see¡­ So, what was the point of the useless darkness magic?¡±


    ¡°Haha~ That¡®s the first time that magic has been called useless. At first, I thought I did not hear you. But I guess I have to show young mages what its capable of¡­¡± The magic activated again after he said that. Enveloping the room in darkness and eerie stuff. I heard a faint sound followed by a weird feeling of uneasiness ¡ª it was an alarming feeling, I don''t know if it was the same as Kuro felt it that time with the adventurer I killed out of rage, but I felt... scared. I moved in a panic, I had to move, it was something dangerous and sinister. Then I heard a dull sound hit the ground.


    ¡°H-How¡­¡± The magic wore off and I looked at the ground. There was a rock. Unfortunately or fortunately, I had developed a strange fear of being hit by rocks, something I had just discovered but it did not take me that long to think what made me feel like moving. It was the feeling of being thrown a rock when you cannot see it, something sinister indeed. I decided to inform him about the situation, seeing he was astonished. I did not think it was that amazing, it was more like a self-defense mechanism if anything.


    ¡°Well¡­ if you used something else than a rock, I wouldn¡¯t have dodged it." I paused. "But the magic is still pretty useless,¡± I nonchalantly restated my thoughts on him. He let out a dry laugh as he returned to his desk. He had been behind me after throwing his rock.


    ¡°I am looking forward to seeing what you can do. The test will begin now! Even though you already passed¡­¡± He tried to sound excited about the big reveal but then sounded disappointed. I did not understand this old man at all. I mean, to be fair, he did not ever say ''test begin''. But, wow, was it supposed to be a shocker or something? I did not expect it, but then again, I did not expect a rock to be thrown at me.


    ¡°So, what¡¯s the test?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Simple. You just have to name neutral attribute magic! Everyone should know about forbidden magic. So, it¡¯s basic knowledge for most people. Of course, this is not the only question we do normally. But I think it should be enough.¡±


    I nodded. Of course, it was more than enough! I pondered for a second recalling all of the spells I knew about regarding neutral attribute.


    I spattered a lot of forgotten spells I knew in excitement. Some of them were my own original spells! How could I not be proud of them! Although I did behave like Kuro there, but he did ask about forbidden magic. Having more knowledge than him in that regard should give me a better standing on his perception. It''s not like he will think I am suspicious since he did get a letter of recommendation of Dan. He must be trusted among people to have such influence, so I will be okay if I do this much.


    ¡°To believe you would even know about forgotten spells! Spells that were said to be lost in time. Some of the ones you mentioned are among those! Also a few ones I did not recognize¡± he murmured. "Anyway, I am surprised you knew about Ruin." He began laughing again¡­ He seemed rather amused. But¡­ Ruin, is that impressive?


    ¡°What''s astonishing about knowing Ruin?¡± I decided to ask out of curiosity. He stopped laughing, he was probably taken aback from this.


    ¡°Well, the last time I heard about the spell was about a certain girl destroying kingdoms.¡± Hearing this my smile instantly turned bitter.


    ¡°Is something wrong?¡±


    ¡°N-no.¡± Everything is fine! I did not totally destroy a few kingdoms on a tantrum¡­


    ¡°Well, I am looking forward to seeing more of you young lady. This concludes the exam.¡± I started getting up from my seat hearing his dismissal, but he wasn''t really prepared as he called out for me again. ¡°Wait.¡± I paused. ¡°Would you show me some of your mana control? This is not really necessary.¡± He said with a bit of hope but I did not really want to do so.


    I just shook my head and left the room. He seemed disappointed but, I don¡¯t even know what is a normal mana control. I might have done something bad in a Kuro style. Which frankly I wanted to avoid doing again. I did it with the Neutral attribute spells¡­ I should probably watch out more shouldn¡¯t I?


    On the hallway, the receptionist was there with a gloomy expression. As soon as she saw me she rushed to me.


    ¡°I am sorry¡­¡± Those were the first words she spoke to me.


    ¡°About?¡± I tilted my head, it was weird.


    She grabbed my shoulders with teary eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t worry young girl. Not every teacher is as mean as that person. Let¡¯s hope you get a different one for approval next year.¡± She was about to cry. But¡­ What?


    ¡°If you mean the old man. He was pretty annoying, but nothing too hard¡­¡± I stated my opinion. However, the receptionist''s eyes went wide and her mouth opened.


    ¡°Eh. You passed?!¡± She was having a panic hearing me. I just nodded.


    ¡°That¡¯s the first time Lynn passes someone in the past three years!¡± She stated in joy. Was his name Lynn? Oh well¡­ What''s so amazing about the old man anyway? Well, I don''t care either way. I have to go back, I dislike being alone with a weird receptionist and a old man that has an overexcitement for magic.


    I started walking back to the elevator. Leaving the receptionist behind. I had no time to be praised by her, it sounded annoying.


    ¡°Wait!¡± I heard her hurried steps but I continued walking until I reached the elevator. To my surprise, she actually caught up to me after I had entered the elevator. Although she was heavily panting.


    ¡°Why, did, you, do that!?¡± She was heavily panting and supporting herself by holding her knees. She did do a long run, the hallway was long and she seemed to have been talking about stuff when I left her, most of it was about the old man. I had hoped I could leave her behind but I guess that wasn''t the case. I should at least honor her question.


    ¡°I did not want to hear you monologuing about the old man.¡±


    As rude as it was¡­ It was the truth. I¡¯d try to be nicer, seeing I am pretty much alone here. But this was just too much. I mean seriously. I don¡¯t care about how mean the old man is. He was pretty weak anyway. Level 85 I would guess¡­ Nothing praiseworthy. However, the receptionist seemed to think differently as I saw her frown.


    ¡°I will have you know! That he isn¡¯t an old man. He is Lynn! One of the few Grand Mages!¡± She talked about him with sparkling eyes. Seeing she didn¡¯t move I tapped the lowest button on the elevator. It started moving down slowly, it was nowhere near as fast as when it went up. So I was stuck listening to the receptionist and how much she admires the old man. Now, I don''t mind people admiring other people, but this was too annoying. I don''t care if he has a dog or two dogs or three dogs...


    In the end, I was stuck hearing her monologue inside the elevator.

 (Chpt. 44) Choosing a path

    Alice.


    ?Yami?


    I looked at the teacup I was holding, a swirl could be observed after adding a questionable amount of sugar. Again; the maid did give me a weird look, but that did not matter. I was emotionlessly looking at the spinning liquid, it had been quite a while since Aizen had left and the boredom I was feeling could not be described. I found myself wordlessly staring at the now calm dark-tea ¡ª watching my eyes; my appearance was somewhat weird, I wasn¡¯t smiling. Something was missing, was it Aizen? I don¡¯t think that was it, something else; something important for me was missing. But I couldn¡¯t tell ?¡ª I shook my head.


    ¡°Yami, are you alright?¡±


    ¡°I am fine.¡±


    I casually answered Ari, who was looking at me with concern. She looked at me with eyes full of doubt and a slight hit of displeasure. But, I wasn¡¯t feeling that well for some reason; now that I had sat down, I had a lot of things to think about. First what happened earlier today.


    I still couldn¡¯t believe Ari did not believe me; calling it a lie instead. I guess it was my mistake ?¡ª I took it too far. I couldn¡¯t really try to convince her, what would I gain from it? I would only gain my own self-approval, nothing more. Besides, whether she believes in me or not, does it matter? I am me, that¡¯s all that matters, I don¡¯t need to prove anyone anything. But there is something missing.


    ¡°Mistress Yami.¡± Hearing those words; my train of thought shattered and I grimaced; instantly looking at the source. It was Firil. I flinched, trying not to glare daggers at him. He seemed quite taken aback from my behaviour but cleared his throat and stepped into the room, he took a seat on one of the couches. We were in the guest room; it was the coziest place in the entire mansion.


    ¡°I mean¡­ Yami.¡± I tilted my head hearing his correction, he had already gotten my attention. There was no need to rephrase himself. He cleared his throat again and started speaking. ¡°How about meeting the smith I told you about tomorrow?¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± I did not even think about it. Ari tilted her head seeing my sudden change of mood, but I digress. Smithing and emotions ?¡ª there is only one important concept there. And I know which one it is, I had no time to waste about why I was feeling depressed.


    ¡°Very well¡­¡± he paused. ¡°Is there something else you would like to know?¡±


    I pondered for a second. ¡°Why did Aizen have to go alone?¡±


    ¡°She had to be escorted by Gerard to the academy to take the test, so there was no need to accompany her, seeing it could influence the results.¡± I nodded hearing his explanation and stood up. There was no time to waste.


    ¡°Yami are we going somewhere?¡± Ari suddenly asked. I just smiled and took her hand.


    ¡°I just remembered I had something important to do, see you later.¡± I gave Firil a casual farewell, he seemed to be thinking about something after hearing me. We left Cecil alone again, but I think it was better for her to be with her father.


    We left the mansion and thanked the guard for his services, it seemed to be common courtesy or something. I learnt a few things from Ari once Aizen left, seeing I was bored. So, I did the best thing and bombarded Ari with questions; a lot of them did not get answered, but I got to know a few things.


    We walked towards the magic academy. The time was around lunch time ?¡ª not many people were around because of it. Eventually, we found ourselves standing in front of the snowy institution. It was as white as ever.


    ¡°Yami look.¡± Ari pointed towards someone in the distance. I squinted my eyes and with a bit of a struggle I managed to see who Ari was pointing at. It was Gerard. Without much thought, I took Ari with me and stood next to Gerard, he seemed to be waiting for something, seeing that he did not see us right away. Eventually he noticed a shadow casting on the ground and at last; he perceived us.


    ¡°What are you girls doing here?¡±


    ¡°Looking for Aizen.¡± I briefly stated.


    ¡°Oh¡­¡±


    He let out a slight surprise sound. I noticed he opened his mouth again but we started hearing something coming from inside the building. I could only hear muffled sounds but it sounded like an argument. And it was getting heated.


    Ting~


    ¡°I told you already! I don¡¯t care about the old man!¡±


    ¡°You clearly don¡¯t understand his greatness.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s so great about that fossil?!¡±


    ¡°Fossil?! Who are you calling fossil?! I bet you wouldn¡¯t even be able to talk to him if you were truly facing him!¡±


    Aizen was arguing with a blue-haired girl. She looked like a mage of sorts. The argument was gradually scaling up, however, there was one important thing I picked up on this argument. ¡®Who cares about some old man?¡¯ I share Aizen¡¯s thoughts on that regard. I don¡¯t know what old man we are talking about, but unless it¡¯s someone like the King I doubt it¡¯s relevant.


    Aizen sighed. ¡°What¡¯s so important about the so-called Grand Mage. All he did was use some eerie darkness magic that seemed like child¡¯s play!¡± After Aizen¡¯s exclamation the receptionist stopped moving; she practically froze for some reason.


    ¡°How annoying¡­¡± Aizen grumbled as she exited the capsule thing she was in. Until she noticed me. she slightly flinched and then sheepishly approached me; it was somewhat weird. However, before she could say anything, the receptionist rushed in the middle of us and faced Aizen.


    ¡°Youuu, girly! Why are you lying to me?! There is no way Lynn would use Shadow Curtain!¡± She was slightly red. Aizen sighed seeing the unyielding receptionist and then dropped her shoulders.


    ¡°You are right, I might¡¯ve been delusional or something¡­¡± Then after some fake disappointment face her expression turned monotone. ¡°You should tell the old man that using darkness spells on children can leave them delusional.¡± The receptionist flinched and lifted her finger to argue, but Aizen continued, "Also, why is there only one office in the entire building?"


    ¡°You¡­ How did you know that?!¡±


    ¡°Answer me.¡± I could tell. AIzen was fed-up with this woman; the woman flinched again and took a step back. Although to be fair, Aizen did not even bother to hide her annoyance; which can come up as scary sometimes. Although, I wonder how she knew that.


    ¡°The rest are private staff rooms¡­¡± she mumbled.


    Aizen nodded in understanding and came to my side, then whispered into my ear. ¡°Let us leave, this woman is just as crazy as that old-man upstairs. These people are not sane¡­¡± She sounded rather tired so I just awkwardly nodded and took Aizen¡¯s hand. I also did the same with Ari. We left without saying anything to the woman; who did not seem sane. Gerard awkwardly followed us not knowing what to say. The woman was left standing there as she sheepishly returned to a desk and started grabbing documents dejectedly. I think she was a receptionist.


    I managed to catch a glimpse of the ''receptionist'' once we were near the fountain that was between both buildings; the receptionist was¡­ holding her head in pain and mumbling things like an insane person. She then looked around the room in skepticism a few times, I could not really make-out what really happened.


    ¡°So, how did the test go?¡± Gerard hesitantly asked.


    ¡°It went well.¡± Aizen answered with a grin. Gerard breathed in relief.


    ¡°That¡¯s good news, I will inform milady.¡± He bowed and then left us alone. I think he just wanted to leave, but I don''t blame him. The atmosphere earlier was quite awkward.


    Ari was confused. ¡°Umm¡­ Aizen, what argument did you have with that mage?¡± She quietly decided to ask. Aizen sneered.


    ¡°That mage, or rather, receptionist. She is crazy ¡ª I go outside the old-man¡¯s office, and the first thing she does is look at me like a hurt dog. And then once I tell her I passed she can¡¯t believe what I just told her, and after that she just starts monologuing about the old-man like if he was some sort of deity.¡± she ended up her complaints with a face full of dissatisfaction.


    ¡°Well, if she talked about the man like that, wouldn¡¯t he be important?¡±


    ¡°No Ari. At least not to me. That man was something to laugh at, he was annoying and seemed to have gone senile a long time ago. He tried throwing me a rock for whatever reason, only insane people do that.¡± She glanced at me. ¡°So, I can safely say, that man was crazy. Important to her; maybe. To me; not really.¡± Aizen ended up dismissing Ari.


    Ari did not really have anything else to say so she just nodded. Aizen still seemed to have anger stored; she looked at me with glaring daggers and rushed to me.


    ¡°Why did we come to the capital?!¡± She grabbed my collar and started shaking my neck.


    ¡°Well¡­ I just wanted to see metals.¡±


    ¡°You and your stupid rocks...¡±


    She seemed rather frustrated. However, rocks weren¡¯t stupid. Before I could correct her, Ari tried to intervene.


    ¡°What¡¯s so bad about this place?¡±


    ¡°Everything. The people are crazy, just look at the receptionist.¡± Aizen pointed with one hand at the receptionist. She was still mumbling like a crazy witch. ¡°See?¡± Aizen continued. ¡°It¡¯s your fault K-Yami. You are going to have to make up for it!¡± I couldn¡¯t help but smile from Aizen¡¯s childish behaviour. She finally let go of my collar.


    ¡°You are going to come with me to the Academy!¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± I let out a stupid voice. ¡°Nononono! I was going to meet that smith tomorrow!¡± I held my head in pain. How was this possible, I know¡­ I shouldn¡¯t be doing this, and I am trash for doing so but I had to go see the smith. ¡°Aizen, I will come with you to the academy if you wait a bit.¡±


    ¡°... A bit?¡± I nodded to assure her.


    ¡°Yes, a bit. I will be doing smithy things and then I will join you once I am done¡­¡± I hesitantly said.


    Aizen pondered for a few seconds, she sighed. ¡°You are always like this¡­ Fine¡­ just, be sure to join me.¡± She smiled. I am blessed to have someone like Aizen to my side.


    ¡°What about me?¡± Ari suddenly asked. Aizen seemed to have an idea from her question and grabbed our hands and went back to the mumbling receptionist. Once we were in front of her desk, she groggily lifted her head up and her eyes trembled when she saw Aizen.


    ¡°W-what do you want?¡± She hesitantly asked. Aizen hearing this; yanked Ari in front of her.


    ¡°I want her to come with me to the academy. She has no mage qualifications but she will serve as my companion.¡± She said with a smile; the receptionist grimaced.


    ¡°I can¡¯t do that! First you dirt Lynn¡¯s name and then you make such a selfish request? Besides is the girl even okay with it?¡± Ari was troubled and looked at me, I just nodded making her nod towards the receptionist. ¡°I still can¡¯t let you?¡ª¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine! That girl is interesting anyways!¡± A raspy voice resounded inside the room, however there was no clear source. The receptionist blushed and grabbed her trembling heart, her breathing got rough so it took her a few seconds to stabilize herself.


    ¡°Alright¡­ Just because Lynn approved of it¡­¡± she sulked. Then she looked at Ari. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±


    ¡°Ari¡­¡± Ari fidgeted not knowing what was going on anymore. To be fair, I wasn¡¯t really following this random development either. The receptionist wrote something on a paper and looked up.


    ¡°Okay, you girls can go now.¡± Ari was confused and tilted her head.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you need more information?¡±


    The receptionist shook her head. ¡°No, missy over here, has all of the data¡­ And I assume she is a familiar of yours or something, so it¡¯s fine.¡± She said with a crooked smile.


    Ari hesitantly nodded and we left the building. The receptionist did not seem mentally stable at that point in time. So I guess it was for the better to leave her alone. We left the school without saying anything and headed back towards the mansion. We strangely did not run into people or anything; it was a welcome thing.


    We arrived at the mansion and were greeted by a sulking Cecil on the garden.


    ¡°...¡±


    We did not say anything as we passed the gates.


    ¡°... Why did you people leave without me?!¡± She had enough of being ignored and exclaimed with teary eyes. I was the first one to speak.


    ¡°Well, I thought leaving you with your father was a better idea¡­¡± I scratched my cheek in awkwardness. Although, I did actually think that it was a better idea indeed. It¡¯s better if she doesn¡¯t bond too strongly with us, we cannot really take her away from her family. Cecil seemed unsatisfied and stomped the ground.


    ¡°That¡¯s not fair¡­¡± I approached her and stroked her hair and just pampered her in general, which somewhat appeased her anger. The guard was awkwardly watching us, since we were still in the mansion¡¯s garden having a random argument.


    Gerard stepped outside and guided us into the guest room again; it was the place where we had spent most of the time ?¡ª on purpose. So, it did not really bother me or anyone for that matter. However, Cecil was upset, so I kept giving her attention in hopes to make her less upset.


    ¡°Just don¡¯t do it again¡­¡± she quietly said.


    I had no choice but to awkwardly nod. Fenri was missing the entire time so I had no idea where he had gone.  But I felt nothing wrong with it, I knew he would come running as fast as possible if something happens. I kept giving her attention for quite a while. Aizen ended up sulking for some reason and Ari tried to console her¡­ I was kind of lost.


    This continued until dinner. Firil was missing for whatever reason. But apparently he did spend most of his free time with Cecil now, which was a good thing. We went to sleep without anything happening. It was an eventful day but not an eventful evening.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 45) Igniting the fire that was forever lost (1)

    Alice.


    ?Yami?


    I woke up normally on Cecil¡¯s bed. Cecil and Ari were oddly hugging each other, I mean oddly because I remember that when they went to sleep they weren¡¯t really hugging each other. I think it was because sometimes one does move in their sleep. Although it''s quite useless to think about such things.


    I looked towards Cecil¡¯s window which was conveniently next to her desk; the reason being ?¡ª the room was dimly lit by a blueish hue. I looked to the outside world and the sky was dark blue, the sun had not risen yet. It was the early morning. I was hearing footsteps outside the room; the hallway was somewhat active, even though it should¡¯ve been around 7:00 AM, well I had no clock, but it was way too early.


    Unexpectedly Gerard silently entered the room. We locked gazes for a brief moment, and he stood there not knowing what to do. It took him a few seconds and then he stood by the side of the bed and started trying to wake Cecil up.


    ¡°Milady, wake up, you have to attend the academy,¡± he said in a whisper. ¡®Wait, were classes starting that early?¡¯ As I was getting surprised Cecil finally opened her eyes and sulked. She got off the bed and then slowly turned to me, seeing I was awake.


    ¡°Yami, don¡¯t miss me, okay¡­?¡± She said so while rubbing her eye, I just slowly nodded. Gerard took her to another room for some reason. I did not know what to think of it, well, rather. What was the reason for her to be moved inside another room instead of staying in her own? I looked at the door for a second or two before I started thinking.


    ¡®Gerard did say attend the academy. Does that mean Aizen and Ari have to go now? I wonder¡­¡¯ I thought for a second before getting up and leaving the room. Fenri slightly opened his eyes to look at me before going back to sleep. I was on the hallway which was now deserted. I looked for a pair of black doors, as soon as my gaze landed on them I quickly made my way towards them.


    I wanted to ask Firil. I know it¡¯s early in the morning, but if Cecil is awake and Gerard was awake before her. I see no reason to why Firil wouldn¡¯t be awake. Besides, he did seem to be a hard-working man, so I see no real problem with going into his office. Gerard did show me around the mansion after the family argument that happened not too long ago.


    I stood before the black-doors. I did not get close to them last time, but they were finely crafted. No imperfections and they did have slight engravings on the frames and knobs. They got my seal of approval after I looked at them for a few seconds. But I was not there to admire the perfection or the quality of the wood used on said doors. I took a deep breath before slowly opening one door.


    The room was completely dark, well I thought it was completely dark until I saw a small source of light in front of the towering windows at the back of the room. There was a pile of books and documents on top of a desk. I closed the door behind me; as soon as I closed the door a silhouette rose up from the desk, I saw myself reflected on the glasses he was wearing.


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s you.¡± He did not seem surprised. ¡°What brings you here Yami?¡± It was a familiar voice and talked to me like I knew him. I realized it was Firil, but I was just not on my five senses yet. He curiously watched me as I thought.


    ¡°Um¡­ Cecil is going to the academy right?¡±


    ¡°... Yes, that is correct. Is there something wrong?¡± He calmly asked.


    ¡°Well, wasn¡¯t Aizen supposed to go as well?¡±


    Firil was silent and sat back down on his desk and began removing some documents to be able to see me without standing up. He silently looked at me for a second or two.


    ¡°... Yea, she is supposed to go¡­¡± he sounded confused and thought for a few seconds before nodding. ¡°I am sorry, Gerard was also supposed to wake her up, but looks like he forgot.¡± I nodded in response to his apology.


    I guess that made sense, although going to the academy right now? Didn¡¯t Cecil just come back? I mean, I remember she did say she was going out of the academy when she got kidnapped. But Aizen just joined the academy; wouldn''t classes be ongoing already? This makes no sense.


    ¡°Is there a reason to why classes are starting again? I mean, weren''t classes already active? What about something like vacations? ¡± I asked while tilting my head. Firil sighed and looked to his window with a slight hint of sadness.


    ¡°Well you see, I am glad my daughter is back. But the academy failed her due to absence, so she is restarting again. On the bright side, she can join the class for young mages. I did argue against her being failed in spite of me reporting her disappearance, but I was told it was policy¡­ Anyways, I am getting lost here. There are vacations but actually classes for young mages start today, so there is going to be an entrance ceremony and everything,¡± he explained.


    Well, that¡¯s a lot of information, but what kind of policy is that? Oh, well¡­ At least I got an answer to my question. So, I guess Aizen and Ari need to be woken up now?


    ¡°Is there something else you need?¡± Firil asked in a friendly tone.


    ¡°No, thank you.¡± I left the room. He seemed slightly disappointed I suddenly left, but there was not much I could do about it.


    On the hallway, I ran into Gerard, who slightly tilted his head after watching me leave Firil¡¯s room and then continued walking down-stairs. Meanwhile, I walked towards Cecil¡¯s room and entered her room. Or I thought I did, I entered a random room that had a coffee table and some sofas, it seemed to be a private room of sorts. I exited and looked for Cecil¡¯s room, it took a few attempts but I finally found it.


    All of the doors looked the same, except for Firil¡¯s office. I did run into a few servants inside the rooms but I closed the door before they could say anything. I looked at the sleeping Aizen and Ari who were smiling, I almost wanted to let them sleep but unfortunately, I had to do it; I started shaking Aizen.


    ¡°Uhh¡­¡± Aizen groaned. ¡°Do you have any idea of the hour? The sun is not even up yet, are you sane?¡± She questioned while looking at me.


    ¡°Well, I know that. But, apparently, you have to go to the academy.¡± I silently explained to her; she frowned but there was nothing that I could do about it. She ended up nodding after a few seconds of thinking. I was taken aback by this.


    ¡°Are you not going to ask why?¡±


    ¡°Well, the receptionist from yesterday did say ¡®better luck next year¡¯ or something along those lines. So I think classes are just starting¡­¡± she quietly explained herself.


    ¡°Oh¡­¡±


    I was surprised, I expected her to call it an excuse to wake her up or something along those lines. Aizen began to wake Ari up and concisely explained it to her, and by that I mean. ¡®Ari, we are going to the academy.¡¯ Followed by an awkward nod in response. I guess that was her way of explaining the events.


    She got up and dragged Ari with her. She also grabbed my hand and took me downstairs along with Ari. We ran into Gerard who was surprised by seeing all of us awake. Before he remembered something and silently mumbled something in hatred to himself. Aizen took us into the guest room and sat me down along with her.


    ¡°Why did you take me with you?¡± I asked.


    ¡°What? Are you seriously telling me you don¡¯t wish to see me off?¡±


    ¡°...¡± I silently shook my head. ¡°Sorry¡­¡±


    She was right, I should at least see her off if I am not joining her for the academy life. Gerard entered the room and stood in front of us.


    ¡°I am sorry for forgetting to wake you girls up¡­¡± he bowed. ¡°Milady will be here shortly so that miss Aizen and Ari can go, as for miss Yami.¡± I stiffened. ¡°The smith will be here in a few hours.¡± He informed us and left.


    ¡°Miss Yami, are you getting married soon? Is it with that smith? Or is it the man that proposed to you?¡±


    ¡°Shut up!¡± Damned dragon, why does she have to mention it! I might like blacksmithing, but it does not mean that, does it?


    ¡°Yami¡­ I think you are very pretty, so I don¡¯t think that man was at fault¡­¡± Ari tried to console me, but I just made a bitter smile. I didn¡¯t know how to feel about being proposed, let alone being called pretty¡­


    ¡°T-thanks¡± I awkwardly responded to Ari''s compliment. It was the only thing that came to my mind after being complimented. The same maid that gave me a weird look with the sugar, came into the room and gave us tea. Then she dumped a lot of sugar in my tea. It looked like she was learning; she gave me a smile after mixing it and then left the room. The guest room was a free tea place.


    Aizen and Ari took their tea and relaxed themselves. I did so as well, I wasn¡¯t really a tea person but having it prepared every time, I saw no problem with it. I was starting to like tea, or rather; the fact that it was just as available as water inside this house was the part I liked. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s bad for the body to drink this much tea, but I saw nothing wrong with it.


    Cecil entered the room wearing the sailor uniform I had given her. She looked at us and then Gerard entered the room.


    ¡°Time to go.¡± As soon as he said that Aizen got up and dragged Ari and bid their farewells, they left the mansion with Cecil. Gerard stood there with me inside the room, he then took a seat and a maid gave him tea. I looked at him with a confused expression. He seemed to realize this.


    ¡°I also need breaks every now and then.¡± I nodded to his explanation. ¡°Also, should I refer to you as just Yami? I notice you go stiff every-time you get called miss.¡±


    ¡°Just Yami is fine¡­¡± I quietly told him.


    ¡°Yami it is¡­¡± He paused and looked at his tea. ¡°I am sorry about the day we met, I was not in the right state of mind. And I did offend you all of you.¡± He said with regret.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, I was surprised, but I am glad nothing else happened.¡± I truthfully informed him my thoughts. He slightly nodded.


    ¡°I am sorry.¡± He apologized again.


    ¡°About?¡±


    ¡°I thought you girls were suspicious so I went to extreme lengths¡­¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­ Well, nothing bad happened in the end. So, it doesn¡¯t matter.¡±


    I was enjoying the small-talk with Gerard, mostly because I had never talked with him before. He seemed relieved after hearing me, as if a weight on his shoulders was gone. I was happy for him even though I did not know much about him. At least he is an honest person, and he is willing to tell me and to apologize. I wonder if he already apologized to Aizen? Well, that is something he will do just judging by his behaviour.


    Gerard thanked me and left the room. I finished my tea but it was still too early, I placed the empty tea-cup on the table and sleep took over me. I looked forward to meeting the mysterious smith, my mind drifted afterward.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 46) Igniting the fire that was forever lost (2)

    Alice.


    My body started being shaken by a mysterious force; making me mumble and drop a slight bit of saliva. I noticed the shaking stopped for a slight second, but as if having made its resolution, it continued. Eventually, after some happy mumbling, I opened my eyes with drowsiness. The first thing I saw was a man with brown hair and a small moustache; his face had slight wrinkles. I immediately turned pale.


    ¡°Umm¡­¡±


    ¡°So, you are finally awake¡­¡± he sighed. ¡°The smith is here.¡±


    I turned paler, Firil had just woken me up, and I had shown some embarrassing sight before being woken up¡­ It did not help that he had to wake me up to tell me about the smith being here¡­ I hastily stood up and tried to fix my unkempt hair, I managed to flatten it a bit. Looking at my hand, I froze, it had white hair¡­ The shock did not last long... I was too drowsy to remember most things. While I did random stuff trying to wake myself up; namely slapping my cheeks a few times; Firil gave me a weird look. After a few seconds, I was finally fully aware of the world around me.


    ¡°Sorry¡­¡± I awkwardly apologized to Firil; who just slowly shook his hand.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, just go ahead and meet him. He is waiting outside,¡± he quietly said in reassurance. I quickly nodded and went outside ?¡ª ignoring the maids and butlers, I also forgot about Fenri. I even almost forgot the gate guard existed when I exited. I did manage to wave at him. But I realized something odd once I was outside the gate.


    There was no one. Confused, I glanced around the vicinity. But there was indeed no one. I stood there for a few seconds, not knowing what to do. Eventually, I thought it was better to go back inside; I turned around.


    ¡°... Where is this girl?¡± I heard a confused and raspy voice behind me, it was somewhat familiar. I quickly turned around. There was a burly dwarf walking around. I somehow did not see him before, however, it was ¡®that¡¯ dwarf. We locked gazes.


    ¡°Youu¡­ What are you doing here?!¡±


    ¡°I want to ask the same!¡±


    We were both taken aback by this and flinched. The first one to recover was the dwarf.


    ¡°I am here to pick up a lovely girl that aspires to be a great smith!¡± He said with passion. However, I just sat there and quietly watched with an emotionless face. He was weirded out. ¡°What? Are you not going to say anything? Shoo! stop wasting my time. I am waiting for someone,¡± he said in annoyance. But I looked at him.


    ¡°I am the girl you are talking about¡­¡± I awkwardly said. He paused and scanned me entirely again. He looked for the house guard to ask him something, but he was missing. As I followed his gaze I heard the door of the mansion click and open. Firil came out.


    ¡°What¡¯s the problem here?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Firil, is this the girl you told me about?¡± He said in annoyance as he pointed at me.


    ¡°Well, yes. Is there a problem?¡±


    ¡°... No.¡± He gave me a death glare. ¡°I was just confused because she is an acquaintance.¡± He quickly explained; making Firl nod in agreement and then he pleasantly muttered something and went back into the mansion.


    The dwarf looked at me, I had forgotten his name. He turned around and waved over with his hand.


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s go girly.¡±


    ¡°You aren''t going to say anything else?¡± I was confused.


    ¡°No, that other girl taught a valuable lesson after-all. Besides, I don''t have anything else to say.¡±


    After he said that, he started walking. Leaving me with no choice but to follow him. We exited the residential area and the guards were somewhat surprised but did not say anything. People looked at us and gave us a variety of gazes but did not say anything either. The dwarf guided me in the guild¡¯s direction, but we continued walking for quite a while. We walked for a long time, I was surprised the capital was this big. Eventually, we stopped.


    We were in front of a big castle that looked straight out of a movie. Imposing walls and beautiful landscaping work. However, I had no time to admire the castle. Why were we here? We arrived in front of the castle guards who did not even slightly move when they saw us. When the dwarf approached they opened the gate and allowed us to walk into the castle.


    ¡°Why are we going inside the castle?¡± I asked as we walked down the bridge.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it obvious? We are going to the forge!¡± He joyously exclaimed. The word resonated with me not allowing me to retort at all. I paused for a few seconds and recalled a lot of things, but I still had to ask.


    ¡°Why is the forge in the castle? Wouldn¡¯t a forge be available anywhere else?¡±


    ¡°Yes, but this forge is special girly. You will understand when you arrive.¡± He explained with pleasure.


    I gulped hearing what the tiny man was saying. A forge in the castle? Weird, but sounds exciting. Special!? I am all for it¡­ I want to see what makes it so special. As I was trembling with excitement, we entered the castle and then the dwarf guided me to the inner garden. It had a myriad of colors from the bountiful flowers. I was confused as to why we were in the garden, the garden felt great because it was secluded. Anyway; he continued walking and I awkwardly followed behind.


    After some more walking, we reached a single towering door with metal framing. The dwarf opened it without much difficulty and made me enter. It was a forge. However, I did not look around much, I don¡¯t know if this is what he meant by ¡®special¡¯. But, there was a second garden, this one had no flowers. Instead, it looked into a cliff, leading to a picturesque landscape; a lot of green forests and prominent rivers as well as mountains that pierced the skies. The dwarf noticed my gaze on the mountains.


    ¡°There is a tale that says that a ferocious dragon lives there¡­ Oh, well that doesn¡¯t matter. It¡¯s impressive but not the special part I talked about.¡± What does he mean? Also, what kind of dragon? Hmm... Is Fifi doing alright? What else could be special?


    I paused and looked around. The garden was small because the entire flooring of the forge was made out of bricks. We couldn¡¯t set the grass on fire after-all, I looked around trying to find the special part that the dwarf talked about. There was a single giant furnace that was brightly burning, an anvil, and a  quenching recipient, among other forge utilities. However, I saw nothing truly special aside from a chest. The chest looked rather plain and the metal edges it had were somewhat rusted. Nothing important. Worth mentioning that there were comfortable chairs looking towards the forge for some odd reason.


    ¡°So, what do you think? Impressive right?¡±


    ¡°Well, isn¡¯t this a normal forge with a nice view?¡± I casually asked him. He sighed.


    ¡°No, girly, you don¡¯t understand.¡± He opened the chest. ¡°This!¡± He was holding a piece of metal high up in the air as if it was something to admire.


    ¡°So?¡± I tilted my head. He frowned hearing me and started grumbling.


    ¡°This! Is mithril girly! Do you understand?! It¡¯s one of the most valuable and durable metals that mankind has acquired!¡± His lecture did not achieve much but I decided to not say anything.


    Mithril¡­ I mean, it has been a long time since I have seen mithril. But, well, it was okay I guess¡­ I wanted to see a new metal, regardless of its quality or purity. After all, discovery is the joy of people. So I couldn¡¯t help but be disappointed by looking at another piece of mithril. The ingot he pulled out seemed to be high quality. It was almost white with a blue metallic shine.


    Seeing I was ignoring him; the dwarf grumbled for a few minutes as I was immersed in my thoughts. I absently looked at the landscape as I waited for the dwarf to finish his rambling. I did not think much of it. He also stomped the ground and was about to throw the mithril into the ground, however, he thought about it and went back to the chest and took a copper ingot and smashed it instead. After a few more minutes he had finally calmed down.


    ¡°Girly¡­ Don¡¯t make me mad again¡­ Got it?¡± I nodded. ¡°Very well, I was told that you wanted to learn to smith.¡± I awkwardly nodded. ¡°So, I will make you anything you request and you get to keep it. I will explain the process and teach you to the best of my ability.¡± He sounded very professional. I nodded yet again.


    ¡°So, what would you like to have made out of mithril?¡±


    ¡°A dagger,¡± I said without hesitation. He nodded without thinking much of it.


    ¡°Okay, I will begin.¡± He placed the mithril inside the furnace and closed it. ¡°I am not very good at explaining, but basically you need to bake it until you feel like it¡¯s calling for you.¡± I instantly nodded, despite his weird explanation I understood what he meant. ¡°In other words; take it out when it¡¯s shining in a beautiful orange glow.¡± He smiled.


    We both watched the furnace with excitement, not uttering a single word. Who could say a word when watching a metal get heated to its optimal temperature for molding. I looked with max concentration at the metal. I could pretty much feel the metal inside the furnace and tell its state. It was about time to take it out. However, the dwarf kept waiting for a minute more and finally took it out.


    ¡°Ain''t it beautiful?¡± he showed me the metal. I couldn¡¯t help but awkwardly nod. It was ruined... But I couldn¡¯t really take over his work. It would be disrespectful, I had no choice but to keep watching him on the process.


    He kept explaining as he moved things around with his tongs and his hammer that seemed to be made out of some really high-quality metal. Eventually, he moved into the hammering process.


    ¡°So, girly. I want you to pay close attention.¡± I would¡¯ve paid my utmost attention even if he hadn¡¯t said anything. ¡°You want to shape it, you want to give it an identity and make it live. Treat it like your own child.¡± He had passion to spare, that was for sure.


    One hit in and the metal slightly bashed in; flattening ever so slightly.


    And another one. I absentmindedly watched him delicately hammer the mithril. I could see sparks flying; his eyes burning with passion and sweat dripping down his forehead wrinkles. However, the bright smile on his face was that of a child. I felt strange seeing him, it was almost like¡­ Watching one¡¯s own reflection.


    Three hits, four hits, six... Ten¡­ I continued to carefully watch his work as he hammered with passion. The shape was there, I could perfectly see it in my mind. I saw the perfect design, something that I would be proud of. I watched with sparkling eyes, accompanied by inhumane concentration, time slowed down.  At that moment I noticed the hammer ever-so-slightly changed its trajectory and bashed the edge of the metal instead; effectively flattening it slightly too much, also causing a not so nice metal ring.


    The metal kept being hammered in all the wrong ways possible. I gritted my teeth, it was so painful that I thought the metal itself was screaming in agony, every single sound it emitted was a mistake, resonating in my ears and giving me a headache. He kept hammering it and eventually a fine metal dagger came out. He reheated it again and let it cool down, it was to keep the strength and flexibility of the blade and also make it soft, but I had a sour face.


    ¡°Beautiful isn¡¯t it?¡± He said with a bright smile. I nodded again, but I did not know what to say. While smithing is beautiful, when you don¡¯t agree with others¡¯ methods it¡¯s quite painful. It¡¯s like watching a smooth and unblemished surface get deliberately messed up. It¡¯s something that you want to avoid but it just happens. I felt kind of similar to this whole situation. Almost as painful as deliberately hitting the face of an anvil...


    He moved into sharpening the blade, annealing in ash or waiting for too long wasn''t necessary for mithril, it could just be cooled at air temperature as he did earlier. It was easy to grind but was so sharp that it did not chip easily. I had no comments about it, his technique was great and overall he did not make mistakes. There was nothing worth mentioning, making a mistake in sharpening was actually quite hard. Maintaining a straight edge during the sharpening process in smithing was something to be expected from a smith and he had delivered.


    ¡°Now I have to reheat it again.¡± He said as if I was going to be confused by this. I just nodded. ¡°You see girly one needs to quench the blade.¡± I nodded again as he tossed it into the furnace again. Eventually, he took it out and threw it into the quenching tank with tongs. He waited with sparkling eyes as he looked at the sizzling oil. He repeated the quenching process a few more times. It was a bad idea to keep doing it since it affected the metal in a negative way¡­


    Once he was done with all his quenching he threw it into the furnace. "Time for tempering." He said as he took it in and out of the furnace to retain a constant heat on the blade, he did it for around thirty or so seconds before quenching it one last time. This hardened the blade but it also allowed it to retain some flexibility. It basically avoided making the blade brittle.  After taking it out of the sizzling oil he polished it with a file. He did a good job at it.


    He moved into making the hilt for the dagger as he continued explaining with pleasure and joy. Some leather and rope were used and he tightened them with strength into a uniform and linear pattern. It was simplistic but stylish. He did not add a hilt but did add a pommel. He quickly forged a small marble with some silver and peened it into place, then he turned to me with a bright smile.


    Looking at his expression of pure joy I had remembered. It wasn¡¯t all about the process, or what¡¯s right or what¡¯s wrong. It was about enjoying it and having the passion to make it happen ¡ª to create things. It was an art. It was something for people to enjoy and watch.


    ¡°So, what do you think?¡±


    ¡°Truly beautiful,¡± I said with a faint smile.


    ¡°Very well¡­¡± He smiled. ¡°You can have it.¡± He handed me a dagger, it was pure quality but I still couldn¡¯t help but be bothered by the methods he had used. However, I gripped the dagger and I felt a strange sense of comfort, it was as if it was made just for me. I realized yet another thing. He noticed my smile.


    ¡°It¡¯s my best work, I hope you love it as much as me.¡± He smiled again. ¡°If you take it to a reputable enchanter I am sure something amazing will come out of it.¡± I took his word for it and placed it behind my back; adding some magical energy into the process. I felt a weird sensation and looked back at the dagger and inspected it.


    [(Unnamed) ?¡ª Legendary. ?¡ª A dagger crafted out of pure passion and outstanding skill: Who says skill is everything? Love ought to be somewhere in the mix, right? Enchanted by a girl that rediscovered something she had forgotten about; finding herself once again.]


    I twitched reading the odd description. But it was truly a masterpiece. The dagger was ever so slightly shining in a blue hue, it was barely noticeable. The dwarf took note of it.


    ¡°Looks like it likes you!¡± he began laughing. I don¡¯t think it was because of that¡­ I reread the description and changed my mind; a faint smile surged on my face. ¡®Rediscovering something¡­¡¯ I happily mumbled as I sat down on one of the chairs away from the forge. The dwarf did the same thing. He had a blissful smile as he absentmindedly looked at the sky. I looked at the dagger and started thinking.


    Rediscovery... Finding something new; a path at the end of the tunnel... Or a light? Or... something bright, like a furnace. What was one of the first discoveries for mankind? Was it fire? Hmm... Rediscovering something forgotten... I enjoy this feeling!


    As I thought with a smile on my face the dwarf nodded and slightly rose up and fixed his gaze on me; bringing me back into reality.


    ¡°Now it¡¯s your turn!¡± Eh?


    ¡°Nonono, I can¡¯t do it.¡± I denied it. I did not want to craft in front of this person or anyone for that matter. It could be bad for everyone. However, the dwarf narrowed his eyes, but he did not seem annoyed; instead, he fixedly looked at me.


    ¡°Come on girly. Do you think I am blind?! You have as much passion as me, just do it!¡±


    He gave me a rough pat on my back. I gulped as I looked back at the forge.


    Alice.


    You can read up to 5 chapters ahead on my patreon, only 4 are up right now, the 5th will be going up today or tomorrow. o/ Just thought I should mention it every once in a while.

 (Chpt. 47) Igniting the fire that was forever lost (3)

    Alice.


    I looked at the forge and got hit by a wave of nostalgia. The amount of time I spent hitting a hammer against metal; the times I hit the hammer against the face of the anvil only to find out it was incredibly bad. The number of weapons I made, the failures, the successes I experienced... My lips trembled and my eyes got somewhat watery, I wiped them off quickly before the dwarf had noticed. I wanted to do it, I did, except I was uncertain. The feeling of doing something that I shouldn''t do... It was haunting me... I had to think of something ?¡ª an excuse, an enabler to allow me to do this.


    ¡°Girly are you okay?¡± The dwarf asked with slight worry.


    ¡°... Yes.¡± I quietly answered as I was indulging in my thoughts.


    ''An excuse¡­ something...'' I looked back at the forge and got to thinking. ''Was there really a problem with smithing? Was there a problem with my identity? I am pretty careless most of the time. I have always been like that ?¡ª ignorant, not a care in the world, and now I am thrown here, having absolutely no idea what to do. Would it be bad if people found it who I am? Would it be bad if they thought about something else? Could I do something about it?''


    I started biting my finger as I desperately thought, I was insecure and naive. I am still the same, but was it what I wanted? Once again, I have companions, I have close people that care about me. Was being selfish bad? No, that doesn¡¯t matter. I just want to be happy with them, I can¡¯t keep lying to myself ?¡ª ignoring everything that happens and pretending everything is fine. It¡¯s already too late to think about ¡®What will happen?¡¯ it already happened, I just did not want to think about it. Crafting a dagger on a whim, going on subjugations and here I am trying to keep a ¡®low-profile¡¯. Laughable. In the end, people already took notice of me, it doesn''t matter if they notice any further. It''s not like I can avoid it forever. Besides, nothing bad can come out of smithing.


    I steeled my heart and looked back at the forge with unwavering eyes. It was time, no more running away, no more lying to myself; just being myself was enough. I am sorry Aizen, I might not go to the academy with you anymore¡­ Well, it''s probably better in the long run anyway. I can''t see myself pretending to be a mage for a while, it sounds impossible.


    ¡°GIrly, are you sure you are fine?¡±


    I nodded in response and looked at the dwarf fixedly, he was taken aback as he took a step back; it was normal. I had been looking at the ground with a hard expression for the past five minutes, but I was sure now. This is what I wanted to do. People watching? Who cares, ill-will? It will be dealt with. I will deal with whatever problem surges. With those thoughts in mind, I smiled and looked back at the forge in general. I was ready to tackle this.


    ¡°I will be borrowing some Iron.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you want Mithril?¡±


    I shook my head. ¡°No, I want to make a dagger but I don¡¯t want to replace yours,¡± I said with confidence, it almost sounded aggressive. However, the dwarf just laughed.


    ¡°I like that spirit! I had started to believe you forgot how to smith there! I knew you had it in you; even though I was obliged to explain everything, I thought it was unnecessary and I was right." He smiled. " Now show me your finest work!¡± he encouraged with joy. ¡°Oh, I almost forgot.¡± He offered me his hammer. ¡°You can¡¯t do smithing without a hammer, you don¡¯t seem to be carrying anything after-all.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it,¡± I declined with my hand. He was taken aback as I walked towards the forge and opened the chest. I looked inside, it had one more Mithril ingot, a few other metals and finally Iron. I started carefully looking at the hefty iron ingot, looking for the finest and purest ones. Imperfections could surge during smelting after-all. The dwarf curiously watched me as I nit-picked the iron.


    Finally, I chose my ingot and took it out of the chest.


    ¡°A fine choice.¡± the dwarf commented on the background. I looked around just to see if there was anything. I saw a lot of metal rods. I knew it was what I needed, the dwarf for some reason did not use one for the dagger he made me. But the use for the rod I was thinking of was just preference and did not affect the final product. I grabbed one of the rods and simultaneously placed the ingot on the flat part of the anvil or known as the table. I could mess it as much as I wanted!


    ¡°Oh? Using a rod? Interesting!¡± The dwarf interrupted my joy.


    ¡®Just shut-up already old man¡­¡¯ I mumbled in annoyance.


    I almost threw the ingot into the furnace and didn''t chisel it, I had almost forgotten just because of the old man. I wanted to fuse it with the metal so I had something to hold on to; not wanting to use tongs; it was the only option I had. I borrowed a random chisel and looked at the ingot one last time.


    ¡°Doubting yourself?! Well, of course, you don¡¯t have a hammer!¡± I sighed again, he interrupted me yet again! Annoyed, I stuck my hand inside my cloak and took out my smithing hammer. The dwarf paused and blinked a few times, he looked at the hammer before recovering.


    ¡°Oh¡­ To think you are always prepared like a true smith. I am proud of you.¡± What¡¯s wrong with this dwarf. ¡°That¡¯s quite the fancy hammer you got there, I don¡¯t even recognize the metal,¡± he added.


    I sighed again as I began making a hole with the chisel. I also threw the tip of the metal rod into the furnace. I managed to make a small hole and I fitted the rod into the ingot. I was pretty sure it wasn''t the way to go about doing it, but well... I kind of just wanted to start the real thing already. I peened the rod into the ingot somewhat forcefully.


    "Oi girly, I thought you know how to do it!" The dwarf seemed annoyed but I just shrugged. Who said there was a manual to do this type of thing anyway. One drawback to doing this was that I was literally going to need to waste extra metal if I wanted to keep the type of metal consistent throughout the blade. It was just more of an... uh, nit-picky thing than anything else. Once peened I threw the entire contraption into the furnace.


    I watched and waited, the dwarf did so as well. However, instead of being focused on the metal inside the furnace he paid closer attention to my movements and my expression. It was annoying but I still had to concentrate on the metal ?¡ª I sighed not being able to do anything about it.


    ¡°Ey, girly. Don¡¯t forget the metal!¡± He added after my sigh.


    ¡°I know!¡± ''How annoying could he get!'' I grumbled as I watched the furnace.


    It took a few minutes but the metal was shining in a nice orange color. I clumsily grabbed the rod with my left hand before removing it in a hurry. I had forgotten it was hot¡­ I grabbed the rod with my gloved-hand this time, it was my dominant hand so it was kind of awkward because I was used to doing it with my off-hand. I thought about what to do with the rod; I had to hammer with my dominant hand after-all. And said hand was being occupied by a metal rod. I thought for a second and moved it to the anvil.


    ¡°Dwarf, do you have a spare glove for my other hand?¡±


    ¡°Dwarf?! I will have you know my name is Alron!¡± he sighed. ¡°Where is the other pair of that fancy glove you are wearing?¡± he questioned in suspicion.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have it, do you have another glove?¡± I dismissed him and asked again.


    Surprisingly he sighed and tossed me another glove, it landed on the ground. I frowned but the old-man was pouting. ¡®Was it because I called him dwarf? How childish...¡¯ I put on the glove as I complained; leaving the metal resting over the anvil. The ingot was heavier in spite of having a counterweight so it stayed atop of the anvil without much problem, gravity is pretty useful and amazing!


    With a now protected hand I gripped the rod, it felt warm, as opposed to scorching hot. I carefully looked at the iron, however, the dwarf seemed to have thought I was doing something else.


    ¡°Doubting yourself again?! Well, of course, if you don''t know what you are doing it makes sense!" I expressionlessly looked at the dwarf. "Why are you looking at me like that? I am just offering feedback... Kids these days..." What was wrong with him?


    I grumbled again, but I could not waste much time. Unfortunately, the iron was starting to cool down and I had to stick it into the furnace again. After reheating it the dwarf made some annoying comments but I chose to ignore him. He was worse than me, he was voicing every, single, complaint¡­


    I attentively looked at the reheated iron and thought about what type of dagger I wanted to make. I decided to make a generic hilted dagger. I did not want to make it as thin or as sleek as the one he made me. After deciding I began hammering with moderate force, I did not want to dent the metal or ruin it.  A pleasant metal ringing sound started to resound throughout the area.


    ¡°That¡¯s a nice technique.¡±


    I ignored the dwarf and continued as harmonious sounds resonated and reverberated in my ears. It was pleasant and felt almost like a trance. It was one of my biggest joys. The dwarf was about to comment on something but he looked at my smile and decided to not say anything. The metal was flattening and becoming thin it was also becoming harder and stiffer, I reheated it once again. It took a few minutes; I placed it on the anvil again.


    It resembled a thin rectangle with a stick stuck into it. I had to give the blade a handle so I laid it on its side and started hammering it close to the rod. Flattening it and making it thinner in the process. Once that was done, I had to do the general shaping of the blade.


    I started hammering the edges and various parts of the rectangle until it became rounder and eventually had a single pointy edge. I was hammering with full concentration, I was delicate to not deform the malleable metal. I was only seeing my movements and the anvil, everything had turned into darkness, it was like some sort of state. However, I knew that it was a good thing; allowing me to focus with inhuman precision and accuracy.


    I looked back at my dagger-shaped metal brick and nodded in satisfaction ?¡ª putting away my hammer and placing the metal contraption atop of the anvil. That was finally done, now I needed to move into the next step, well it had already begun ?¡ª cooling it down. I decided to go back to sitting on one of the chairs, I did not forget to keep my hammer with me. It was special.


    The dwarf came over to me, he had shiny eyes but his expression carried a lot of doubt and curiosity. He was looking at me differently.


    ¡°Em. Girly, what¡¯s your name?¡±


    ¡°Yami,¡± I nonchalantly answered.


    He thought for a second.


    ¡°Yami, your skill is admirable, probably better than mine.¡± he sighed in defeat. ¡°You remind me of someone,¡± he added, however, I became confused.


    ¡°Who could that be?¡±


    ¡°Oh, you didn¡¯t know? The master craftsman has a disciple.¡± I stiffened. ¡°Anyways, this girl was really amazing you know?¡± Girl? Could it be?


    ¡°D-Did this girl carry a rapier by any chance?¡± I trembled with hope.


    ¡°... No? What type of smith could or would carry a rapier?¡± he dismissed me giving me a weird look.


    I sighed. I couldn¡¯t help but look at the ground with disappointment. Well, it can¡¯t be helped, I got my hopes up just because of her gender. Now that I think about it, the first time I heard about the so-called disciple was with Ari and she only called her ?¡ª ¡®really talented smith¡¯ Hmm, I wonder.


    ¡°Girly, are you alright?¡±


    ¡°Oh, sorry. I was just thinking about her gender, don¡¯t worry about it,¡± I said with a wry smile. However, the smith thought about this for a second.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know if it''s a ¡®she¡¯ or a ¡®he¡¯, hard to tell¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡± I was confused by his insecurity.


    ¡°Well, she or he, whatever you want to address the disciple as. Is a prideful person that takes pride in her work, however¡­ Well, let¡¯s just say it resembles the capital¡¯s Guildmaster.¡±


    I thought for a second and couldn¡¯t recall ever meeting the Guildmaster from the capital, only the elf but he wasn¡¯t the Guildmaster. If he is saying it¡¯s hard to distinguish her then¡­


    ¡°Kind of like Dan?¡± I asked hoping he knew him.


    ¡°Oh, you know his name? Not many people do!¡± he laughed.


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± He was the Guildmaster?! ¡°B-But, wasn¡¯t he just a simple scout employed by the adventurer¡¯s guild?¡± I asked in confusion.


    ¡°... Oh, so that¡¯s why he went into a ¡®business-trip¡¯ that explains some things¡­¡± the dwarf muttered in realization. ¡°Looks like we are derailing the topic. Well, now you know a bit about the disciple, she is pretty relaxed and overall, a skilled smith. Although I wonder if what he said about the master craftsman was true¡­¡± he silently said, however, this also spiked my curiosity.


    ¡°What kind of things did she say?¡±


    ¡°Well, things like ?¡ª He used dragon fire to smith things. ¡° I stiffened. ¡°But, that was the most believable part, then she said he could break a mountain with a swing of his hammer and stuff like that¡­¡±


    ¡°Ehh¡­¡± What¡¯s wrong with my ¡®disciple¡¯?!


    ¡°Anyways, girly, you might want to get back to your dagger. Looks like it¡¯s ready to grind,¡± he added as I had an internal panic attack. Snapping me back into reality. I could worry about my ¡®disciple¡¯ for as long as I want, but I won¡¯t get answers about her unless I meet her. There was no use worrying about her ridiculous claims.


    ¡°Dwarf, is there a way to meet the disciple?¡± I asked in curiosity as I headed back to the forge. I head some grumbling for a second.


    ¡°I heard she is returning to the capital in a month or so.¡± A month? I guess I could wait. I will be able to do a lot of smithing in a month¡¯s time anyway, I don¡¯t think we are leaving the capital any time soon, unless of course, Aizen decides to blow-up the academy for whatever reason. I am sure she wanted to blow it up yesterday anyway.

 (Chpt. 48) Igniting the fire that was forever lost (4)

    Alice.


    I looked at my piece of metal that sort of resembled a dagger, it had finally cooled down. It was preferable for it to rest for a day or two, but I am not making a masterpiece here ?¡ª it¡¯s just a dagger, nothing more nothing else. Although I wonder what would happen if I chose to make something more exotic and the dwarf wasn¡¯t bothering me. Hmm¡­


    ¡°Girly, are you alright?¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    I was wordlessly looking at the block of metal, but well, no use in thinking about what it could¡¯ve been if it already is something. I should just be happy about it. Now that the iron had cooled down it was time to grind it, but there was no grinder. It was just to sharpen it. It¡¯s a good time to sharpen because the iron is soft, which is preferable. However, my only issue was that I had absolutely nothing to sharpen it.


    ¡°Hey dwarf, do you have something to sharpen this?¡± I said as I waved the metal rod; moving the metal along with it.


    ¡°Tsk, can¡¯t you just call me by my name already?¡±


    ¡°Well, you also know my name and keep calling me girly, so I don¡¯t see the point.¡± I shrugged.


    ¡°That¡¯s just my way of speaking when I don¡¯t care about something!¡± Is that so? Looks like I won¡¯t be getting a file out of him. Oh, I do have a file, I did use one back then¡­


    I pulled out the metal file I had forgotten about, it¡¯s surface was rough but it was not rough enough to dent the metal. It was just rough enough to sharpen and smooth it out at the same time. It was a truly magical file, it was an item of course. So, I guess the magical part was more in a literal sense.


    ¡°Why did you ask for one if you already had one?!¡± the dwarf was annoyed. I shrugged again not wanting to reply to him. He was nice to talk to, but he had those moments in which he was annoying to me. I am smithing? Don¡¯t make random comments. At least he provided useful information on my ¡®disciple¡¯.


    The dwarf was bickering to himself, I stopped watching and decided to sit back on the chair and file the piece of metal calmly. I mean, there was no wheel to grind it, filing while standing up? No thanks. With those thoughts in mind, I stabbed the rod into the grass in a manner that made the dagger point at me. It wasn¡¯t the smartest idea, but it was comfortable, besides, it had no sharpness at all. Not even the pointy tip could realistically stab a person without putting an unrealistic amount of strength into it.


    Since the ground was somewhat soft I could angle it to my liking. I placed it close to my thighs and began grinding. The metal dust was laying on my skirt, but I could remove it with just standing up, so I wasn¡¯t really bothered with it. A random thought came into my head. ¡®Why was I wearing a skirt?¡¯ Not in the sense of ?¡ª it was the gear that got transformed, but more of a ''Why wasn¡¯t I bothered with wearing one, and why did I not switch it?'' I thought about it and came to no conclusion or rather, a simple conclusion ?¡ª  It was comfortable and had forgotten about it.


    I shrugged and continued filing down the metal, it wasn¡¯t an exciting process, well not that much. Since most of the shaping was done during the hammering, all I could do at this point in time was give it sharpness and engrave it. Oh right, I had forgotten. I am too used to doing it at the end, but it would be better if I did it right now.


    I took out a chisel and grabbed my hammer again ?¡ª breathed in and out. Stared at the dagger and planted my chisel right on the center. It was fine pointed for small details. The dwarf said I couldn¡¯t do it, but, who cares? Not me. Dismissing the ¡°restriction¡± I gently pressed it against the metal and started hammering the handle from behind very gently and slowly, It was carving a beautiful half-moon pattern. I finished in about thirty-seconds. I looked at the thing with a smile and returned to filing it.


    The dwarf had finished bickering to himself and came over to see me. He seemed confused as I was filing it while sitting down. Well, he did file the dagger he made me while standing up, so I guess that was one of the reasons he came to see. His eyes glued into the dagger and he raised a brow in annoyance.


    ¡°Girly, didn¡¯t I tell you that you could not use the symbol?¡±


    ¡°Yea.¡±


    ¡°So why are you using it?!¡±


    Well, it technically is my symbol. I am also technically my own disciple, but I am currently a girl and am too young visually. Hmm¡­ Family name Kuro, and nobles did seem to have a family associated with them. Somewhat like a privilege. I have decided.


    ¡°Well, the symbol belongs to the Kuro family no?¡±


    ¡°... Yeah¡­¡± he awkwardly stated after hearing me.


    ¡°Then there is no problem.¡±


    I started filing again as I watched the dwarf think quietly to himself with a bit of shock on his face. Well, that wasn¡¯t my problem. It seems like we are in medieval times anyways, not like there will be copyright laws. I am sure plagiarism is incredibly common and people don¡¯t even realize it, why should I have to abide by such dumb rules if that was the case.


    The dagger had started to shine but that wasn¡¯t really the point. I kept on grinding away metal with my file, or filing. It¡¯s kind of weird how language works. Anyway, I had to make it sharp and give it a smooth edge. No nicking. I finished one side while eyeballing the symmetry between the two sides. Although it wouldn¡¯t really matter since I would need to check it again for the other side.


    I started on the backside of the dagger. While thinking various random things the dwarf seemed to have arrived at a conclusion.


    ¡°Girly, I don¡¯t know what distasteful joke is this. But lying about being a member of someone else¡¯s family could get you in big trouble. Not even his disciple is in his family. Why would a random girl like you be?¡± He stated as he pointed his finger at me repeatedly in annoyance.


    ¡°You can just check with one of those appraisal stones.¡± I absentmindedly answered him as I continued filing the dagger. It actually looked like a dagger now.


    The dwarf did not seem to appreciate the dagger I was filing as much as I did ?¡ª he was shaking his fist in rage instead.


    ¡°Girly this is no joking matter! Put that stupid dagger aside. You should be able to understand when to stop and when to keep going. And you must stop when you are having an important discussion with someone, besides, you are filing it. It¡¯s not like it will break because of that!¡± What did he just say?


    I stared at him with an emotionless expression. ¡°That might be the case for you, but to me, this dagger is the important thing. I already told you to bring a stone if you don¡¯t agree with me.¡± He had crossed the line.


    The dwarf flinched hearing my icy-cold-voice and exited the forge through the hulking door. I breathed in satisfaction and kept absentmindedly working on my dagger. It took a bit more filing, but it was finally sharp. It drew blood with somewhat touching it with my finger! It kind of hurt a bit, but it¡¯s not like my stats were going to give me lizard skin or extra pain tolerance. As far as I knew vitality just stopped people from dying as long as it was possible. Meaning getting decapitated would kill you instantly, same goes with having the heart pierced. It was just preferable to not take injuries at all.


    But well, now that it was sharp, it was time to quench it. If I tried to cut something or someone down in the state that the dagger is in simply put ?¡ª it would ruin its edge with a single swipe. The metal was in a softened state so I had to harden it. I tossed it into the furnace and waited for it to be in a nice dark orange. I did not really want to melt the metal either. Once that was done, I took it out from the rod and placed the incandescent metal dagger on top of the flat part of the anvil next to the horn. I couldn¡¯t really use the face for this. I took out another chisel, this one was flat. I amputated the rod from the dagger. It was time to separate. I couldn¡¯t really chop it off on the face of the anvil. Nicking that surface would add nicks to one¡¯s works when they are hammering. It was a bad idea.


    Once the rod was off. I just left it there. I made sure to cut extra part of the dagger¡¯s tail to make sure it did not create some sort of weird alloy. I wanted it to be pure iron. It was better for my mentality, how could I be okay knowing that, some part of the thing I just made is not iron, and instead some weird amalgam of iron and something else? Using some tongs I found on the ground I put the dagger inside the quenching tank.


    Quenching was nice, but I disliked having to file the metal again to make it sparkly. Since it turned opaque. As I absentmindedly waited the dwarf came into the room and wordlessly placed a crystal and a sheet of paper on my hand. I shuddered almost dropping it. He took the piece of paper and started reading before yanking the stone as well.


    ¡°Looks like you were right¡­¡± he said in defeat.


    ¡°Are you not surprised?¡± I mean, most people did seem surprised.


    ¡°Well, your smithing skill is not normal, to say the least. Besides, I was told you don¡¯t even have a smithing class. How amazing would it be if you had a smithing class?!¡± He said in pure joy. However, there was something odd.


    ¡°What do you mean if I had a smithing class?¡± I asked in confusion.


    ¡°Well you know, classes assist you and sort of unconsciously make your head do the right things, even though I hate to admit it...¡± he stated in annoyance.


    I felt a sense of defeat overwhelm me. I hurriedly went to sit and plopped down on the chair. It was odd¡­ I mean, I thought all of this knowledge was acquired through experimentation and things like that. Not through brain enhancement or whatever he called it. I am annoyed¡­


    In annoyance, I decided to open my long status and take decided to try inspecting my own Class. To my surprise, it worked, and surprisingly or unsurprisingly enough. The Tamer and Summoner classes did mention their way of acquiring them as well as ''assisted by the system'' at the bottom. It made me feel bad, and also kind of silly for taking something as a g ame system so seriously. With a bit of nervousness, I inspected the [Master Craftsman] Class.


    [Master Craftsman ?¡ª A class awarded to someone for their feats, but more importantly ?¡ª their knowledge. Having mastered the three main crafting classes.


    Effects: Compacts all classes into a single one. Allowing the user to learn two more classes. Unassisted by the System.]


    I felt happy and shuddered from joy. If someone got the [Master Craftsman] Class, they would not be able to use it at all unless they actually had the knowledge of things. Although there is something that bothers me a bit. I did not really know how to do potion-making. I mean, I tried it when it was a game. It kind of felt like throwing things into a pot, and ¡°feeling¡± what was right or wrong. There was no logical sense to it. I should try it sometime.


    The dwarf was extremely confused and tilted his head. I did shudder in excitement because of a realization, but he had no idea what it was. Anyway, I was happy too. It was time to polish the dagger.


    I made my way to the quenching tank and took out the dagger. I froze before my file touched the dagger. I still had one remaining thing to do to it, it was tempering. I threw it inside the furnace once again. I had to temper it because otherwise the metal would not be very flexible, which would make it prone to breaking. And I don''t know about others, but having your things shatter and explode is not that fun. Especially when you get injured. I waited a few seconds until the metal was glowing. I took it in an out of the furnace to sort of try to make it retain a certain temperature. This helped me relieve the stress on the metal or whatever by stabilizing whatever it was. I had forgotten the actual things this myriad of processes did to the metal. After maintaining the same temperature, although it probably wasn''t the same. I ''quenched'' it once again or tempered it. Well, tempering was the part of maintaining the same temperature. I think... Ah, this is complicated. The metal was still opaque as it sizzled inside the oil. I waited and waited. The dwarf just watched not really saying much as he only paid attention to the things I was doing.


    I started carefully filing it.trying to only remove the surface level of the dagger.  The dwarf started carefully watching the glistening surface of the dagger as it was unveiled. It was not as white as the one the dwarf had made me, but it was really shiny and had a nice silver color. I just had to give it a handle by wrapping it with leather. But I realized.


    I forgot to add a hilt. I shrugged seeing it was not that important. I forgot the pommel as well, so it was probably unusable as a weapon. Oh well, it was technically still a dagger. With conflicting thoughts, I started wrapping the back-end with some leather I found. The forge had most of the utilities for the manufacturing of weapons. Except for a grinder, for whatever reason.


    I finally finished it. It looked somewhat plain except for the rather peculiar logo on one of the faces of the symmetrical dagger. But it was done. I enchanted it out of habit and inspected it.


    [(Unnamed) ?¡ª Flawless ?¡ª A fine Iron dagger of superb quality. Probably made by some renowned smith.] As always, the description was odd, it was also unnamed. But well, that¡¯d be for the dwarf to decide.


    I handed the dwarf the dagger and he was taken aback by it.


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Well, take it as a thank you for helping me out with something,¡± I vaguely answered him with a  smile. He had truly helped me out ?¡ª giving me a few realizations as well as making me want to smith more. This forge was fantastic as well.


    ¡°Dwarf, is there a way I can access this forge later?¡± I asked in curiosity.


    ¡°The coin I gave you girls is for that. It gives you access to this special place. Only three people have access to it, you being the third.¡± He finished his sentence as he pointed at me. I felt kind of happy.


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    ¡°For?¡± He tilted his head.


    ¡°For everything.¡±


    He nodded with a smile before suddenly remembered something. He looked back at the sky, it was already getting late. We had to go back. The dwarf seemed to have taken a liking to this dagger and he even praised the quality of it. He talked to me about his experiences as well as his failures in smithing as his journey as a smith. Hearing him I recalled a lot of the failures myself. The dwarf was certainly someone to be remembered. I think his name was Alron? Weird name, although mine is still just as weird.


    We finally stood before the mansion and the guard seemed surprised.


    ¡°To think it would take you this long. Hopefully, you enjoyed yourself with the Great Smith,¡± he said in happiness and moved aside. I nodded and went past the gate.


    ¡°Well, see you later Girly, it was fun. Thanks for the dagger! I will see you later if you visit.¡±


    ¡°Thanks for everything Alron!¡± I said as I waved back at him. He staggered before nodding and turning around. Waving again.


    The guard seemed somewhat frozen by the exchange, but it was not my fault. I left and entered the mansion without saying anything to the guard.

 (Chpt. 49) Proving my worth (1)

    Alice.


    ?Aizen?


    ?Earlier that day?


    ¡°Time to go,¡± Gerard firmly stated. Ari and I got up and said goodbye to Kuro. We left the mansion, I grabbed Ari¡¯s hand along with Cecil, who also wanted to hold my hand. In the end, I held both of their hands, I kind of felt like Kuro somewhat. Gerard seemed to have stayed in the mansion for some reason. Well, I have Cecil here, so I guess I don¡¯t have to worry about the potential troubles Gerard had warned me about.


    ¡°So, the academy is starting?¡± I asked as I looked at the dark blue sky.


    ¡°... Yea¡­¡± Cecil did not seem to be looking forward to it.


    ¡°Why am I coming along? Wouldn¡¯t it be better if I went with Yami?¡± Ari asked with doubt, however, I just silently waved my finger side to side.


    ¡°K-Yami will be busy today and probably won¡¯t be able to take care of you Ari, besides, you probably won¡¯t get a lot of enjoyment from her rock monologues,¡± I firmly stated.


    The girls tilted their heads. ¡°Rock monologues?¡±


    I just nodded.


    ¡°Yeah, she has a thing for metals if you girls haven¡¯t realized already.¡± I scratched the back of my head. It was truly weird, Kuro hasn¡¯t really been the same since I met her, something changed. Well, a lot has changed, but something is oddly different, she is not the same rock fanatic I used to know. It¡¯s weird. Well, I don¡¯t dislike her, and she accepted me when I needed her the most. There is no use worrying about it; people change after all.


    I continued walking without thinking too much about it. Even though we went out early a lot of children started coming out of their houses accompanied by butlers. A few seemed rather embarrassed and some ordered the butler around. I saw one ask to be carried, I couldn¡¯t help but think it was silly. If you wanted to be carried around it¡¯s better to bring four butlers and make them all carry you as if you were the top of the world, just a thought. Otherwise, it looks like you did not commit. Pitiful.


    A few of the kids sent curious gazes at me and Ari, Cecil as well. A lot of them used the sailor uniform thing. It was okay, a few of them used their tailored clothes of extravagant colors, but that did not stop them from watching what I was wearing and seem confused. I was wearing the same thing as always, but it seemed that coats were somewhat unusual, well honestly. It¡¯s a good coat, although, I never get cold nor hot, it was comfortable.


    We eventually arrived at the academy which wasn¡¯t as much as en eyesore due to the lack of light. It was nice, I also noticed the fountain was missing and it was replaced with flat ground instead. The mini-plaza of the academy became like an event thing; a platform that was erected with a somewhat tall stand. I saw some kids stop by and curiously watch, we were no exception. I curiously looked at the stage that was made with some sort of condensed earth magic, although it wasn¡¯t an ugly brown it was just as white as the floor.


    I absentmindedly watched, Cecil seemed to understand what was happening and quietly told us what it was about. It was for an announcement of sorts. The place started to be filled with random kids; the ones that noticed me looked at my hair before looking away. It was getting me annoyed, however, my annoyance did not last long as the director showed up. It was the old man. As soon as the other kids saw him, some of their gazes were filled with shock; awe; respect ?¡ª among others. Meanwhile, I looked at him with an annoyed expression. He matched my gaze and smiled. Damned old man.


    He activated a simple wind spell and began talking. ¡°Welcome, new young mages!¡± Everyone seemed in shock due to being able to hear his voice, even though it¡¯s just simple wind magic. ''I wonder how would they react if they saw something more advanced? Hmm...'' The old man continued as I thought.


    ¡°I, the Grand Mage Lynn, have come to wish you all good luck through your path of wizardry,  a few of you might know me already from the entrance test. Some of you are very promising, some of you aren¡¯t. However, don¡¯t be discouraged! Magic is for everyone, no matter their talent, origins, beliefs. As long as there is a heart and a soul, there will be magic!¡± I frowned from his lame speech, however, other people did not think it was lame and cheered for him. Then he turned into a shadow and melted into the ground. Some people looked shocked.


    [You have been assigned class 301 ?¡ª A class for new and aspiring mages.]


    I was taken aback by the random message that resonated in my head, it was kind of like telepathy if I had to think about something. I had never experienced it, although Kuro did talk about something like that when trying to explain how she communicated with people, although it was in the old world. As I reminisced old memories, I noticed a lot of people had weird reactions so it was probably some type of magic I did not recognize, this was what I wanted to see. Something new that I had not seen before, perhaps this was the right place? Well, whatever.


    ¡°We all got class 301 I assume right?¡± I asked the girls. Cecil nodded, Ari was hesitant.


    ¡°I am¡­ 302¡­¡± she said reluctantly.


    ¡°Hmm¡­¡± I pondered for a second and shrugged. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter, you are class 301 now. What can the old man do anyways,¡± I said with confidence, Ari cheerfully nodded, Cecil, did not seem to agree about the uselessness of the old man. But that wasn¡¯t my problem.


    With the guidance of Cecil, we got to class 301, which was on the top floor. I noticed something rather peculiar about the building. It had a strange and totally useless layout as well as no elevator. It was basically a six-floor building that worked as a three-floor building. Students only had access to three floors and the other three were for teachers. So basically, a classroom occupied two entire floors, but teachers would access through the bottom. I did not understand, was it to look cool or something?


    I continued following Cecil to the third floor. She looked at one of the doors and pointed to it. I just nodded, Ari did the same. We entered the desolate classroom and I decided to sit on the front row next to the window. I wanted to be able to look outside in case the thing got boring. It was new mage stuff after-all. I did not really hope to learn much, worst case scenario I can just bother the old man about the telepathy magic thing, which was the only thing that piqued any interest.


    I noticed well-dressed kids started entering the classroom, some looked as young as Cecil, some looked as old as Kuro. The age was varied, there were more males than females for some reason. I thought about it and the only conclusion I could think about was ?¡ª magic is geared towards combat and whatnot. So it was probably more appealing to males, it was something like a primal instinct. Well, I did not understand humans completely, all I could compare them to were dragons. And female dragons were¡­


    ¡®No nevermind, those were crazy.¡¯ I snorted over the thought of a female dragon. ¡®They were truly scary. Although the gender rule did apply; male dragons did prefer fighting. I should probably stop thinking about it before I confuse myself.¡¯ I hurriedly nodded before I remembered the nightmares I went through.


    As the classroom was getting filled, some kids noted our presence. No one really seemed familiar with each other, but they quickly divided into groups that seemed to follow some sort of hierarchy, I could not be bothered to pay attention to the aforementioned hierarchy. I was looking outside the window as I heard footsteps and then they came to a stop.


    ¡°Hey¡­¡± I heard a child voice close to me, causing me to look towards the source. It was a boy that was maybe around my age appearance-wise, with well-kept blonde hair and blue eyes. He seemed to have a refined attire; not wearing the sailor uniform. As well as just general cleanliness. I looked at him without much interest. I didn''t even know why he talked to me, was it an unconscious behaviour to speak to me because of my odd hair color?


    He seemed to be waiting for something as I saw him frown.


    ¡°Are you not going to say anything?¡±


    ¡°No?¡± I tilted my head.


    ¡°Sigh. I am Sam Toule, as you can guess. I am from the Toule family, pleased to make your acquaintance.¡± He was polite, but eh.


    ¡°I see.¡± I did not really care.


    ¡°Are you always like this?¡± he asked in annoyance. ¡°You should be a lot more respectful you know, I am pretty lenient compared to the other nobles. Getting in bad relations with one could mean life or death you know?¡± He dropped the facade as he informed me with a bit of trouble. I looked at him dead in the eye.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care, noble or whatever,¡± I said without interest.


    He froze for a second before snapping. ¡°Suit yourself!¡± He left in annoyance.


    Some people looked at me with interest and others with hate. It seemed I had gained a few enemies already.


    ¡°That was the Toule family! One of the highest-ranked families¡­¡± Cecil informed me with a bit of despair. Well, what power do they have? Political and wealth? I could probably get a nice position in this kingdom through despair and fear anyway, what was the point.


    I felt a lot of varied gazes still pierced on my back; I shrugged and looked back at the window. It was looking at the forest and the mountains. The view was okay, at least good enough to keep me entertained. However, the view that the old man had in his office was so much better. Can I have his office instead?


    As I questioned the ¡®teacher door¡¯ opened; as Cecil called it. I pierced my eyes on it, and my heart started beating faster, I was getting excited. It was the elf! I felt a rush of happiness, maybe it wasn¡¯t all that bad. It was the elf after all.


    He groggily walked into his desk and sat down, quickly glancing over the classroom. Then he pulled a pestle and mortar, he started grinding plants. I heard elves had a thing for plants, but I did not expect him to do that. As I quietly watched him with interest a kid raised his hand. It was the Toule guy. The elf looked at him and frowned.


    ¡°What do you want kid?¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to teach us something? I mean you are the teacher and all¡­¡± His voice lost strength as the elf glared at him with annoyance. The elf stood up and slammed the desk.


    ¡°RIGHT! Right¡­ I am a teacher. Very well! We will be seeing dispelling of spells! Since you are all supposed to have mana control I assume there is no problem¡± He sent an inquisitive gaze at Cecil. ¡°It begins now!¡±


    Suddenly a shroud of darkness covered my vision and sent me to a flowery field, it was illusion magic. However, it dispelled without me trying to do anything. I saw a message on my vision.


    [Resisted abnormal status effect.] I couldn''t help but tilt my head, I had never seen something like the text floating in my vision before, or rather, the ''resisted'' part. I would''ve resisted it anyway, but there was nothing that notified me when resisting it per-say. It was confusing, to say the least.


    The elf grumbled and went back to his plants. Ari¡¯s breathing quickened but she snapped and looked back at me. Then she hugged me with teary eyes.


    ¡°Ari are you okay?¡±


    ¡°... Don¡¯t ever leave me¡­ please¡­¡± She said as she whimpered on my shoulder.


    I caressed Ari¡¯s hair with warm eyes and whispered to her.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be silly, I am the one that should be asking that¡­¡±


    I kept hugging her as I thought about what had just happened. I was annoyed, but I had to remember what just happened. Looking around, everyone seemed to be quietly suffering, or at least from what I could tell from looking at their faces. I recalled the ''abnormal'' thing, and the only thing I could quality as abnormal status would be a darkness spell, well, if it was a darkness spell, then it would be better to not dispel it.


    If my memory serves right; darkness spells don''t leave any effects on their victims if it dispells on its own, if it''s dispelled manually then it''s another story. Or that was the best thing I could think of. I was in quite a predicament, Cecil was sweating but I think it would have been better if she forgot about it. I did not dispel her status effect.


    I put Ari down even though she wanted to keep sticking to me. I looked at the elf, he went too far too fast. He had to be put down on his place, as I looked at him he noticed I was standing up and rejoiced.


    ¡°Oh, looks like we have promising individuals!¡±


    ¡°Shut up, you stupid herbalist.¡± I was glaring daggers at him. He flinched, well all the classroom was out-cold. The amount of bloodlust used did not matter.


    ¡°Tch¡­ I recognize you girl, or whatever you are. You are respectable. Unfortunately for you, I am also Grand Mage!¡± He informed me expecting me to back up.


    ¡°Is that so?¡± I paused as reconsidering it. ¡°I don¡¯t care.¡±


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 50) Proving my worth (2)

    Alice.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care.¡± Grand Mage or not, what difference is there? In the end, it¡¯s just a fragile existence. Like every, single, person that has challenged me. In the end, it¡¯s just a person. I continued looking at the elf, he did not seem to expect this development. As I saw him ready to launch another spell. He was unusually, hostile for someone that is supposed to teach.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    A deep voice resounded throughout the room, I stopped looking at the elf as if he was going to be my next meal. The elf stopped moving and turned stiff when he heard the voice. and with a troubled face looked at the ¡®teacher¡¯s door¡¯. There, stood a well-dressed man with long bath-like robes. I know they were supposed to be some type of formal attire, but I basically got a ¡®bath-robe¡¯ impression from them ?¡ª they were red with white and the man himself looked slightly past his prime; wrinkled and caved in eyes. However, he had a weird aura, something admirable for a human. I looked back at the elf in curiosity, he was trembling and then hurriedly knelt on the ground.


    ¡°Your majesty¡­¡± Majesty? As in the King? Weird.


    The ''king'' sighed. ¡°I was told you were pretty¡­¡± he paused as he thought of a word. ¡°Merciless with students, but this is too much. I can¡¯t have the royal magician court get a bad reputation just because the leader is an elf that despises children.¡± He said in annoyance.


    The elf slowly stood up and snapped his fingers; dispelling the spell, although the kids weren¡¯t really waking up, their expressions just softened and changed to a smile. I figured out that they probably won¡¯t be able to remember anything; mostly because they weren¡¯t waking up. The problem was the elf that I was looking at, the king gave me a weird look before looking at the elf.


    ¡°Who is that student?¡± He pointed his finger at me. The elf¡¯s expression crumpled and he just scratched his cheek not really knowing what to say. Well, he doesn¡¯t know my name and I literally just met him today.


    ¡°That is complicated¡­¡± he paused. ¡°She is, a friend¡­ yeah¡­¡± What?!


    ¡°Is that so? Your friend is very interesting then¡­¡± The King left after saying those words in curiosity, for some reason he was in the academy roaming around or something. But this wasn¡¯t really the issue. I narrowed my eyes and looked at the elf.


    ¡°What are you planning?¡±


    The elf snorted. ¡°You should be thanking me instead. If I told the king you are just a new student who knows what would¡¯ve happened to you¡­¡± he nonchalantly informed me. But it was weird, was this person the same elf? ¡°Besides, you are plenty interesting. I like you.¡±


    I sighed. ¡°You are crazy¡­¡± seeing he did ¡®help¡¯ me in some weird way I guess I will just not do anything to him. ¡°Just don''t use another damned darkness spell or I will turn you to cinder.¡±


    However, he sneered. ¡°As if you could do that!¡±


    ¡°I wonder¡­¡± I set ablaze the plants he was smashing, it was probably some stupid medicine anyway. The elf noticed the change too late, however, he just laughed.


    ¡°I see how it is! Very interesting indeed.¡± he thought for a second. ¡°Those were not flames made by magic were they?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± I shrugged.


    The elf started pondering for a second before bringing out a bag and taking more herbs out of it and another mortar and pestle. I think his bag was an item-bag or whatever Kuro had called it. Apparently it was valuable, but I did not really think of stealing it from him. Besides, I already had a spatial-box. Once the elf set his things on the table again he stood before me.


    ¡°Let us make a deal.¡±


    What is he on about? Well, this seems interesting. ¡°What kind of deal?¡± I decided to ask.


    ¡°Well, nothing too especial. I will leave you all three girls alone from my torment, and you will help me.¡± Before I could say anything he continued in explaining. ¡°I am interested in researching magic around the world and the types, that¡¯s the major reason I am here. I would be willing to share some knowledge with you if you agree. As for what you will be doing, I just want to know the nature of those weird flames of yours.¡±


    Seeing the school life seemed boring I just nodded. The elf extended his hand to form a contract of sorts. I gripped his hand, however, I did not expect to get ¡®system¡¯ messages.


    [Resisted abnormal status effect ?¡ª Impeding Abyss]


    [Resisted abnormal status effect ?¡ª Vanish]


    [Resisted abnormal status effect ?¡ª Touch of Malice]


    [Resisted abnormal...]


    [Resisted...]


    "I am sorry girl, you are too dangerous for my objectives," he coldly said.


    I sighed¡­ it was too good to be true, wasn¡¯t it? I emotionlessly looked at the elf who had a stupid grin on his face. I did what any normal person would do, I smiled and kept his hand gripped. Gradually increasing the temperature of my hand. I was still pretty much fire-proof, so that was good. The elf quickly realized something went wrong.


    ¡°What are you?¡ª ARGHH!¡± His hand was burning, it smelled kind of nice. He kept trying to free himself before taking a knife and bluntly stabbing it into my hand; making me lose my grip, it was kind of extreme attacking a student with a knife if you asked me. However, his hand was pretty much unusable at this point.


    I looked at my hand and while it was bleeding I noticed something rather odd¡­ It kind of looked like broken scales rather than skin. However, I couldn¡¯t rejoice about knowing the fact that I still technically had scales, the problem was, the elf treated me as an enemy. He was holding his hand in pain on the ground, he tried to heal it with various herbs by rubbing them on his burn, but nothing really worked. He sent me a bloodshot gaze.


    ¡°YOU! WHO ARE YOU?! There is no way a random girl can do this! Who are you working with! Is it the elves? Is it the king?! Is it?¡ª¡± He was kind of losing it.


    ¡°Just shut up already, if you did not try anything then your hand would be fine right now.¡±


    ¡°That still does not explain how you survived that!¡± He shouted in disbelief, he fully intended to kill me right there. I guess darkness spells are incredibly powerful if you are stronger than your target, unfortunately he picked the wrong person.


    ''Abnormal statuses,'' as the mystical window calls it. Were useless against me, they were useless in general. They would only work if the status was higher level than the target. If it was equal or lower, they simply would be ¡°resisted¡±, meaning; darkness magic was useless against people stronger than you.


    The elf noticed I looked down on him and did not even bother to answer his barks. Therefore he just fled the scene by hurriedly sprinting out through the bottom door, I couldn''t be bothered to chase after him, I had more important things to care about. I looked to my side, Ari was soundlessly sleeping on the table. The spell probably took a toll on her, I wonder how she dispelled it. She probably isn¡¯t higher level, she is no mage either. It was something that I thought about but arrived at no conclusion.


    I caressed Ari, which somewhat eased up her complexion and even made her smile. Unfortunately, she was still sleeping ?¡ª everyone was asleep. I was practically alone because the elf left in a hurry. Probably in an attempt to fix his hand, although if I had to bet ?¡ª his hand is completely gone and it¡¯s better to amputate it. Well deserved.


    I looked around the room and noticed something peculiar. There was a light on the desk and then it faded. Probably magic again; weird how I have seen more magic today than in the past year or so. Well, I guess that¡¯s fine??¡ª


    The door opened and a knight stepped in, he did not even carry a weapon, he was still armored and everything. He stood in front of me and put a letter on the desk. He bowed and then left. The letter was¡­ Fancy, to say the least, it had golden edges and the paper seemed to be of the finest quality. I looked around; seeing I had nothing to do I decided to open the letter and pour the contents on the table. There were two papers and a type of quill pen. One of the papers was blank and the other one did have writing in it as well as an outlined box. I began reading it.


    ¡°I saw your ¡°fight¡± with the elf. It was, interesting. I am interested in you, you aren¡¯t really his friend are you? I would like to appoint you as an official kingdom magician. Showing the talent of the youth could be beneficial. To reply just write on the blank paper. Feel free to ask questions. They will be answered in the box.¡± or so it read. It was a lot longer but that was basically the summary. The sender was the king himself. But I wasn¡¯t really interested.


    ¡°What do I gain from this?¡± I decided to boldly ask since I really wasn¡¯t interested.


    ¡°What do you mean with what do you gain? Isn¡¯t it obvious? Wealth, recognition, status!¡± The king informally answered, or at least I assumed I was writing to the king. It worked kind of like an instant letter system.


    ¡°Well, the elf was pretty annoying. King or not, I honestly don¡¯t care. Political power, status, wealth. It¡¯s something that can be acquired by brute force.¡±


    ¡°Hahaha~ You are right on that girly. That is why I am here, not because of bloodline, but because of power. Anyway. Is there something you are interested in?¡±


    I thought and thought about his question. I hated the elf but his job seemed fun. Bossing around kids. Well, in theory, it¡¯s teaching, but he did not seem to have problems basically punishing nobles. So I can only assume the elf is backed by the king. Which is odd because he did say I worked with the king, but doesn¡¯t he work with the king? I wonder in how many disasters the elf is involved in? Well, it seems fun.


    ¡°Can I have the position of the elf?¡±


    ¡°Oh, I like you already, that endless greed!" Eh, it''s not greed though... It''s entertainment... "There is no problem with that. Come to the castle tomorrow.¡±


    After I read that, the paper burnt to ashes as well as the envelope. I felt somewhat awkward being invited to the castle by the king himself. In such a casual way too. While I don¡¯t really understand society, wouldn¡¯t he need to be formal? Being the king and all, representing the nation. He did say he got there through power, so maybe strength is more important than I thought in this place? I wonder.


    ¡°A-Aizen?¡± Ari had finally woken up and hugged me again.


    ¡°I am sorry Ari, don¡¯t worry. The elf is gone now.¡± I whispered to her in reassurance. ¡°He paid for his sins as well.¡± Ari seemed to be brought back to reality by what I said.


    ¡°How did you make him pay?¡±


    ¡°Well, he tried to kill me, so?¡ª¡±


    She hugged me again and interrupted me. ¡°It¡¯s better that he paid for his sins then¡­¡± I was somewhat confused by Ari¡¯s behaviour, but seeing her expression I decided it didn¡¯t really matter and I hugged her back. Everyone was still sleeping. The door opened again.


    ¡°What happened here?¡± It was the old man.

 (Chpt. 51) Proving my worth (3)

    Alice.


    I looked towards the old man; he had a crumpled expression as he looked throughout the room. Seeing all the kids fainted made his face somewhat pale. He mumbled something to himself as he was still scanning around until he locked gazes with me. He had a difficult expression but it quickly brightened as he saw me. He walked down the stairs somewhat hurriedly and came over to me.


    ¡°Aizen, what happened here?¡± He asked as he looked around the room once again. However, I just tilted my head.


    ¡°How do you know my name? I don¡¯t remember telling you¡­¡± I did not particularly care about what happened, nor really want to talk about the elf, seeing he got in my nerves and all of that. The old man slammed the desk.


    ¡°This isn¡¯t time for that. Look around you! The students are suffering, yet you care about something so trivial?¡± He tightened his fist.


    ¡°Well, there is not much you can do anyway right? Dispelling the elf¡¯s spell would just make them remember everything that went through in their minds. Wouldn¡¯t it simply be better to let it pass?¡± Even though it was still technically ''gone''.


    ¡°T-That is¡­¡±


    ¡°So, about my name?¡± He sighed.


    ¡°I researched it, is that what you wanted?¡± I nodded in satisfaction. ¡°I did not think you would be like this¡­¡± He sighed again.


    ¡°Well, I am surprised you aren¡¯t being so obnoxious anymore.¡± I bluntly informed him.


    ¡°Students come before the joy of magic!" He paused. "Tell me what the elf did this time¡­¡±


    I lifted my brow. ¡°Well, someone asked to learn magic and he decided to make the lesson about dispelling while also using a Darkness spell on everyone in the room. I assume it¡¯s not the first time he has done something to students?¡±


    ¡°... What a problem; yes you are right. He has a history of being rather volatile, but to think he¡¯d do that this time¡­ What a problem indeed¡­ Are you alright? Despite his personality he is a rather respectable magician. Seeing you can recall everything normally I assume something happened?¡± he tilted his head waiting for my question. I puffed my chest.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, he lost his hand as a price for trying to k?¡ª¡± I paused before I went to far.


    ¡°W-Wait¡­ Kill you?¡± I slipped... ¡°No, nevermind. I don¡¯t know what you did, or what he did. But I am glad you are safe.¡± He gently smiled and patted me. ¡°I know you are amazing, but there is no need to brag about it like that. I am just glad you are safe, as for the other students they should eventually wake up as you said.¡± I removed his hand as he was messing my hair. ¡°Sorry¡­ Well, thanks for letting me know. I will look for the elf to punish him. I will be leaving, take care. A teacher should be arriving soon. You are a strong girl.¡± He patted me again, making me frown, meanwhile, he just laughed at my expression and left... What a pain...


    ¡°What was all of that about.¡± I murmured with confusion.


    ¡°I wonder the same¡­¡± Ari added as she stopped hugging me. ¡°I wonder why he didn¡¯t notice me?¡±


    ¡°Probably because you were clinging to me so tightly¡­ Not like I mind it though¡­¡±


    ¡°Hmm¡­ You are probably right, i shouldn¡¯t cling to you as much.¡± Eh? ¡°Maybe he will notice me next time¡­¡± Forget about that! ¡°Just kidding!¡± She hugged me again. ¡°Aizen, your heart is bumping really fast. Did something happen?¡±


    ¡°N-nothing¡­¡± There was no need for that joke Ari¡­ As I was awkwardly scratching my cheek Cecil woke up and looked around with some confusion. Everyone else was still asleep and there was no staff around. She wiped the saliva that was coming from her mouth.


    ¡°... Aizen what happened?¡± Hmm¡­ Should I say I melted the elf¡¯s hand? Well, for now.


    ¡°Nothing, the elf ran away, that¡¯s all.¡± I casually informed her, she somewhat stiffened hearing my statement.


    ¡°Is it, the elf from earlier today? The one that shouts at people for no reason?¡± I nodded. Ari also nodded as she affectionately rubbed  her cheek against mine. What are you a cat?! It still felt nice. Seeing Ari was the closest to me she was the first one to notice something. She discreetly inspected my hand, her eyes widened seeing my slightly bloody hand, but she did not say anything.


    Ari noticed that Cecil was thinking about the elf and approached my ear. ¡°Aizen, how did you get injured?¡± She asked with worry. I shrugged, assuming it was obvious who did it. Ari thought for a second. ¡°The elf?¡± I nodded. ¡°I see¡­ I am glad you are safe then¡­¡± She hugged me again.


    ¡°Ari, don¡¯t worry about me¡­ I am a tough dragon after-all, an elf won¡¯t be able to do much to me¡­¡±


    ¡°... You may be right, but I was still worried for a second¡­¡± Hearing her I smiled for some reason, someone worrying about me is still a foreign feeling¡­ Well, I guess we won¡¯t be seeing the elf for a while. I noticed Cecil had finished thinking and looked at us.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what¡¯s happening, but can I also join?¡± I shrugged, Ari nodded. Cecil quickly jumped over to us and started hugging the both of us. I did not really know what to make of it so I just sighed.


    ¡°... What happened?¡± People started waking up; voices of confusion, one after another. All basically asking a variation of what happened or just mumbling to themselves about how they could¡¯ve stayed asleep. Luckily they were too concerned to worry about anything else; it basically meant, I could relax myself.


    ¡°Ehem¡­¡± It was the kid from earlier. ¡°I see you all are cuddly and stuff, but seeing you were all awake before anyone else. Mind telling me what happened?¡± I sighed.


    ¡°Nothing happened.¡± I gave him an icy-cold-glare after that. He did not really flinch and lifted his brow in suspicion.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ sounds¡­ unconvincing! Don¡¯t lie to me!¡± He slammed the desk in annoyance. The attention was gathered on us. ¡°Unfortunately for you I can tell when someone is lying to me, it¡¯s a skill I pride myself in!¡±


    How annoying. ¡°Sigh¡­ Listen kid, the elf is gone. He used an eerie useless darkness spell on everyone.¡± I paused. ¡°Besides, knowing this. What are you gonna do now? Go to the director and complain about an elf that¡¯s abusing kids? Don¡¯t make me laugh. In the end; it¡¯s pointless.¡± He flinched slightly.


    ¡°Youu¡­ Who do you think you are to talk to me like that! I have never heard about you; never seen you before. You just show up randomly one day and then you reign supreme? You are just a lowly commoner! How did you even enroll in this school?! You fil?¡ª¡± The door slammed.


    ¡°Yes, yes. That¡¯s enough now. Everyone take a seat.¡± I have heard that voice before. Everyone looked at the door and started murmuring to themselves. The kid in front of me also looked towards the door. It was Dan. He sighed. ¡°The old man told me to take care of some kids, but I just walk into a noble getting mad at someone.¡± He looked at the kid once again as he walked towards me. Dan paused when we made eye contact. Dan sighed once again.


    ¡°Hey kid.¡±


    ¡°Y-Yes?¡±


    ¡°You were asking how girly over here enrolled in this school right?¡± Dan seemed oddly mad.


    ¡°... Y-yes¡­¡± The kid was pretty quiet now, with no shadow of his former self.


    ¡°Well, you see kid. I gave her a recommendation letter, so you are technically insulting me by making such lousy statements.¡± The kid turned pale and fled without even uttering a single word.


    Kids started gossiping to each other again. ¡°She is?¡±


    ¡°The guildmaster¡¯s¡­¡±


    ¡°She got a letter from¡­¡±


    What I picked up on was that Dan was someone pretty important. I looked at him. ¡°Long time no see¡­ So, why are you here?¡± Dan scratched his cheek.


    ¡°Well, you see¡­ The old man asked me to take care of the kids as a substitute teacher, seeing he found me not doing anything I couldn¡¯t really refuse¡­¡±


    ¡°Is that so? But, I am pretty sure you aren¡¯t a mage. So¡­ How are you going to manage.¡±


    ¡°Good question. I don¡¯t know at all¡­¡± Dan thought to himself with trouble. Meanwhile Cecil seemed really confused.


    ¡°Wait¡­ Aizen¡­ You knew Dan?¡± I just nodded, making her gulp. ¡°When did you meet him?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ When we met Dan he was just a random scout provided by the guild. And we went into a horned-dragon-lizard-thing subjugation. So, yeah.¡± I explained it as briefly as possible. Cecil was frozen. I tilted my head somewhat. I mean, I get that Dan is the Guildmaster. but meeting the Guildmaster shouldn¡¯t that hard right? Now thinking about it¡­


    ¡°Dan¡­¡± He snapped and looked back at me with confusion. ¡°You see¡­ Your vice-guildmaster caused a lot of trouble for us.¡±


    ¡°I-Is that so? What did he do?¡±


    ¡°You see¡­ He was very insistent on the fact that we were some suspicious people instead of giving us our promotions that we did not even ask for. Anyway. Dan, I want some compensation.¡± Everyone in the room froze and silence downed on the place. Dan went to thinking.


    ¡°Well, if you say so. Then I guess there is nothing I can do about it. You girls are suspicious after-all.¡± He sighed in defeat. ¡°What would you like?¡±


    ¡°Nothing, now you owe me one.¡± I stated with a gentle smile. Dan gulped.


    ¡°I-I don¡¯t know how to feel about that one¡­¡±


    ¡°Too bad.¡± It was better to have someone like him indebted to me, I simply get more things out of it. Besides, judging by how everyone has their mouth wide-open I assume Dan must be someone really important person. I wonder how Kuro is doing with the smith she was supposed to meet? Dan sighed and came close to me as I was thinking.


    ¡°Very well, I think you will need me anyway. Seeing Yami is apparently meeting with the Guildmaster of the other guild. Just, visit the guild if you need anything okay?¡± I guess that solved the question of who the smith was. I nodded at Dan. He smiled and went back to the desk, which was now his desk. He just sat down and started to sleep.


    ¡°Um¡­ Excuse me¡­¡± Another kid called for Dan. He lifted his face from the desk and looked at him. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to give us class?¡± Dan scratched his head.


    ¡°Well, I am no mage. So I don¡¯t really know magic things. We could make a magic battle exercise if you people want.¡± Hearing this almost the entire room desperately shook their heads. ¡°Tch, you guys are boring¡­ Okay we will be going outside.¡± Dan took us outside through the teacher¡¯s door, which seemed to have a teleportation magic circle that was full of rune carvings and a lot of sub-spaces as well as divisions, I didn''t really understand it, more stuff for research.


    Once we were outside on the now desolate plaza of the school. He stood at the center of it and placed his hand inside his pocket. Bringing out target dummy out of nowhere. The dummy looked cheap and was made out of hay, barely retaining its shape inside the bags it was made with. However, I saw slight magic emanating from it, I assumed it was some sort of item.


    ¡°An item-bag?¡± Ari said in surprise. Dan didn¡¯t really care about the shock and pointed at the dummy.


    ¡°I will allow absolutely anyone to attack this dummy. Whoever destroys it wins. How does that sound? Besides, I assume some of you know a bit of magic already, and if you don¡¯t then you can just watch the wonders of magic I guess¡­ Although I think I know who is going to destroy it successfully¡­¡± He looked at me with slight resentment. No one really noticed it though, which made me sigh in relief.


    Eventually one kid came out of the crowd and stood before the target dummy. He had a wide smirk for some reason. ¡°Just watch! I, Jugrius Rotwood will destroy it.¡± He gave me a deadly glare. ¡°I don¡¯t know who are you, but I suppose I should teach you your place.¡± He nonchalantly said that to me and turned to the dummy.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 52) Proving my worth (4)

    Alice.


    I looked at the kid that stood in front of the dummy. He wasn¡¯t very old, probably the same age as Cecil, black hair and eyes. Normal things. He still looked at the dummy with a smirk and then pointed his palm at it. I tilted my head in confusion, but he continued.


    ¡°O fire, hear my will. From the deepest ashes, from the darkest remains. I, swear upon my name I will turn this barren land in a deserving one, one deserving of the crimson skies and the orange sparks. Hellfire!¡± A long cast and ¡®cool¡¯ sounding words, only for him to emit a small red flame from his hand. It slowly floated towards the dummy, once it hit the dummy it slowly consumed itself and died out... One spark, two sparks... and then nothing. I lifted my brow, it wasn''t done. The dummy twitched for a second and it erupted into a five-meter flame pillar. It burned for a few seconds. He looked at me with a stupid smirk.


    ¡°Did you understand the difference yet?¡±


    ¡°...¡± I tilted my head, was he serious? ¡°You should look at the dummy again¡­¡±


    ¡°There is no way it would survive that. It was hellfire after?¡ª¡± his eyes glued into the undamaged dummy, his eyes started to tremble and his mouth quivered. ¡°H-How¡­ I-I have trained so hard¡­ I-I¡­¡± He dropped on the ground in disappointment.


    I approached the dummy and closely inspected it. Dan looked at the kid as I was doing my thing. ¡°I am sorry kid, the dummy is as tough as a B-ranked monster. Something like that will not do much damage to it.¡± Dan tried to sound regretful but he was being nonchalant about it and almost laughed at the kid that was on the verge of crying. I looked at Dan and gestured him to come.


    ¡°Do you need something?¡± I leaned close to his ear, which made him stagger a bit but he did not move much.


    ¡°Well, you see. I could either burn the dummy to cinder or burn it. My other spells do not show any real physical effect on the exterior¡­¡± Dan seemed confused but pondered for a second.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know what kind of shadow magic you know. But yes, you can also burn it. It¡¯s not that expensive anyway, it¡¯s just a [Rare] item after-all. For a one time thing, it brings me amusement.¡± I just nodded.


    Cecil had never seen me use magic before, well this time it wasn¡¯t going to be magic either. Ari just quietly watched me; I smiled at her as I approached the dummy. The random kid who had been crying stood before me. ¡°What do you think you are doing? Do you think you can take care of the dummy or what?! If Hellfire did not do anything then no low-tier spell will do anything to it!¡± I just ignored him and stood in front of the dummy.


    I sighed and gathered fire on the tip of my finger, it was akin to a droplet of water. Fire was like a second nature to me, it felt even better to use it now than before for some reason. I looked at the yellowed-orange fire that was shining like a jewel. The kid noticed this.


    ¡°Something like that won¡¯t work!¡±


    ¡°I am curious to see what happens¡­¡± Dan added.


    I just touched the dummy with the flame. It spontaneously combusted and turned into a pile of ashes and charcoal in less then a second. It went from fire to nothingness in an instant, it was the first time I had seen something so strange. Dan was pale and the kid had an agape mouth. However, I was also shocked. I didn''t really think something like that could happen. Did I become stronger and never realize it? ¡°Interesting¡­¡± I murmured.


    I sighed and walked back to Ari. She seemed confused. ¡°Aizen, how did that happen?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± I shrugged. Cecil looked at me with curiosity and she opened her mouth.


    ¡°Hey Ai?¡ª¡± Cecil got interrupted.


    ¡°Hey,  you are Aizen right?¡±


    ¡°That was amazing!¡±


    ¡°I must¡¯ve misjudged you, let¡¯s be friends!¡±


    ¡°I told them, you were unique but they didn¡¯t believe me, however, I believed in you.¡±


    A crowd gathered around me and started praising me, throwing nice-sounding things at me. I dropped my shoulders, it was annoying. Before anyone realized it, Dan was standing in front of me. I didn''t even realize it myself, I wonder how did he do it?


    ¡°Sigh¡­ Kiddies, go back to the classroom. I have something to talk to with mistress over here.¡± Dan seriously instructed. Everyone left. He was somewhat oppressing but I nonchalantly looked at him, the first thing I picked up. Is that I did not see him coming at all. Was he another assassin? I looked at him with a discerning eye. Dan met my eyes and flinched.


    ¡°What¡¯s with that look, you look like you are about to end me¡­ If you think I am an assassin well, I am not... I am a thief, it¡¯s different¡­¡± he sheepishly confessed his class. ¡°Anyway, stop looking at me like that, it makes me scared¡­¡± I nodded. ¡°I just wanted to ask, what kind of fire spell was that? I have never seen anything like that before, not even from the old man¡­ Since it¡¯s dangerous I must know of it, so it could help if you told me¡­¡± Dan was very¡­ how to put it¡­ lame? He was very submissive. I sighed.


    ¡°Dan, don¡¯t worry about it. The so-called spell is not a spell. Although it could technically blow up the entire kingdom.¡± He stiffened. ¡°There is no use knowing about it. It¡¯s a racial skill.¡± He pondered.


    ¡°Weren¡¯t you human?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ It''s complicated...¡± I pondered.


    "How so?"


    I wasn¡¯t human. I am not really a dragon. Hmm... Well, I guess it doesn''t matter.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to answer if you don¡¯t want to, even though I don¡¯t really understand where you are coming from." Dan casually said.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what my race is.¡± I casually said as I looked fixedly at Dan.


    "How does that even work!?" He seemed oddly mad.


    Dan''s frustration made me reconsider my stance for a second. ¡°Well, I still wonder about it sometimes. Sometimes I am a girl. sometimes I am a dragon. I guess I am just Aizen¡­ Enemy of humanity, Slayer of dragons, Monster?¡ª¡±


    ¡°Aizen!¡± Ari shouted at me, making me tense. ¡°Stop! This is not you, you are my sister. You are not a monster, you are not the enemy of anyone, you are just Aizen. Who cares about race?¡± I flinched as she stood before me. ¡°Don¡¯t say that again¡­ If I cared about race I wouldn¡¯t be standing here... Race is just that, it doesn''t make anyone different, so don''t ever mention it again!¡± She hugged me as I was frozen in place.


    Dan scratched his cheek; not expecting the sudden development.


    ¡°By the way Aizen, the things you mentioned. As in the things that sounded like titles. Were those titles?¡± He said with a pale face. I just nodded. ¡°I see¡­ Well¡­ what a problem you have me in¡­¡± He pondered for a second. "Alright... This never happened! I am not going to go throw myself to die just because I am the Guildmaster, so, this never happened, problem solved!" Was he seriously that lazy? I mean, I am sure there were other ways to go about it. Well, whatever¡­ I nodded. Ari hissed at Dan.


    ¡°Dan, don¡¯t ever say Aizen would do something so horrible as attacking you. Of course she won¡¯t!¡±


    ¡°Y-Yes¡­¡±


    I hugged Ari back, she gave me a cheerful smile. Making me smile as well. Come to think of it, where is Cecil? She probably heard everything that just happened, no?


    ¡°Sorry! I was¡­ at the bathroom!¡± Cecil arrived panting in front of us.


    ¡°I see¡­¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡±


    ¡°Okay¡­¡±


    All of us acknowledged her existence without much interest, things were kind of awkward at this point. However, she did not seem to mind it as she looked at me with sparkling eyes.


    ¡°Aizen, could you teach me those flames you used?!¡± Dan stiffened but I just sighed.


    ¡°No Cecil, it¡¯s practically impossible¡­¡±


    ¡°Is it impossible because of the lack of mana? I saw the kid gather a lot of mana but when you did it I saw no change to the mana!¡± She looked excited about learning something new. I was also surprised somewhat because I had forgotten about mana flows. I just nodded at her deduction making her somewhat sad.  I did not want to completely disappoint her I touched her shoulder.


    ¡°I can teach you something else eventually if you want.¡± I offered. She was quick on the uptake and hurriedly nodded. Suddenly an ear-piercing bell rang repeatedly, it was way too loud. Dan smiled.


    ¡°Looks like the day is over. Aizen, let¡¯s just pretend nothing happened. I will not do anything, today never existed. I no longer owe you anything!¡± Then disappeared.


    Damn¡­ he is more cunning than what I initially thought! Don¡¯t worry Dan, you aren¡¯t going to get away from me¡­ It¡¯s impossible after-all. Fufufu~


    After laughing to myself we hurriedly returned to Cecil¡¯s home.


    Fenri stood there with a sad face and not even wagging his tail. Kuro did not take him along, nor did we. He was left alone. I petted him and made him an offer. I would take him to the academy if I got the chance, but I was still unsure since the situation wasn¡¯t estable just yet. Kuro was nowhere near to be seen so I played with Fenri until it became night.


    * * *


    The door opened and a pleasant humming could be heard. I tilted my head thinking who could it be,  the person entered the room still pleasantly humming. It was Kuro¡­ Kuro was humming¡­ What happened? I instantly got confused. She just silently approached me and stood before me with a wide smile plastered on her face.


    ¡°Aizen, I will dedicate myself to smithing now!¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± What is she saying?! Did she lose her mind? What about what she told me.


    ¡°Sorry I won¡¯t be going to the academy with you¡­ I have decided!¡±


    ¡°... Are you okay?¡± I asked with concern. She pouted.


    ¡°How rude, I just finally decided I should do something. Besides, this time I am not dragging you along as a portable furnace.¡± ¡­ That was true. I sighed, but it felt oddly nice, something rather... nostalgic.


    ¡°So, you won¡¯t be coming?¡± I asked with a smile.


    ¡°Yes¡­¡± She flinched seeing my odd behaviour.


    ¡°I see. By the way, do you understand how this noble system works. People kept introducing their entire names, and stuff. Now I am conflicted, for example with you K-Yami. Do I use the real meaning of your names or just your names?¡± She instantly flinched.


    ¡°How did you¡­¡±


    ¡°So, for example. Would you say something like: ¡®I am Yami Kuro.¡¯ or would you say. ¡®I am Shadow dark. or dark shadow?¡¯¡± She instantly turned red hearing me.


    ¡°T-that is¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry dark shadow, you don¡¯t need to come to the academy¡­¡± I patted her head with a smile. She turned redder.


    ¡°Youu¡­ Stupid dragon!¡± She started shaking me by my collar. She was cute, which was everything that mattered. This was the Kuro I knew, not the wicked blacksmith, not the stupid one. The teasable one that liked smithing was the right one. I smiled.


    ¡°Sigh¡­ K-Yami, you can go smithing all you like.¡±


    ¡°Really?!¡± Don¡¯t get excited just yet.


    ¡°But¡­¡±


    ¡°But?¡± She was confused.


    ¡°I want a full silver scale armor! It better be of good quality!¡± I rightfully demanded. She flinched but sheepishly took the request with a nod.


    Cecil and Ari were taking a bath together. Kuro and I had dinner as I kept teasing her about her naming sense. While I don¡¯t know where she got the Kuro name, she practically called herself Yami so¡­ Well, that doesn¡¯t matter. It just makes it funnier, I don''t truly know the meaning of her names but I know it was close enough to tease her, which was just right. I lightheartedly chuckled as I rested on the ground. Now that I think about it, I had to go to the castle. I wonder what will I find there?

 (Chpt. 53) Discovering a new light (1)

    Alice.


    Ahh¡­ I wonder, what could I make, what could I do? Well, rather, what should I make this time. A pike, a halberd, another dagger? Should I even make a weapon? Just looking at the anvil brings me joy, the limitless possibilities on that shiny metal surface. Polished to the brim with no blemishes¡­ This is exciting! I wonder?¡ª


    As I was fantasizing in my own thoughts suddenly the world turned dark and I was assaulted by a burning pain on my cheek.


    ¡°Wake up!¡± Eh¡­


    I opened my eyes, it was Aizen looking at me in annoyance. The first thing I did was look at her with confusion, I was sleeping in bed, that was normal. But the light coming in the windows indicated it was way past early morning, or rather, academy hours. I looked to the sides of the bed and sure enough, Cecil and Ari were missing. I became even more confused.


    ¡°Weren¡¯t you going to go to the academy?¡±


    ¡°I have things to take care of first.¡± She nonchalantly answered me with a grin.


    ¡°But what about Ari?¡± I mean, she isn¡¯t even a mage and she left her alone.


    ¡°Eh,¡± she paused. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, the old man should do a good job at it.¡± I lifted my brow in suspicion. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me like that. I left her with Dan and the old man¡­¡± I nodded to her explanation, Dan had shown that he could take care of her. So it was fine by me, however, I was still confused.


    ¡°So¡­ What things do you have to take care of?¡± I decided to ask in curiosity.


    She just smiled. ¡°That¡¯s a secret¡­¡± Then¡­ Don¡¯t even tell me about it. ¡°Anyway, I will be leaving. Are you going to go to the forge?¡± I froze and then excitedly nodded, how could I not go there? It was pure joy after all! ¡°Well, good luck with that. Good bye~¡± She hurriedly left the room. I tilted my head yet again.


    I heard her voice outside the door again.


    ¡°I will be taking Fenri.¡±


    ¡°Woof!¡±  Fenri sprinted off the room.


    ¡®What was all that about?¡¯ I thought. ¡®Well, whatever, I want to eat something¡­¡¯ With those ideas, I left Cecil¡¯s room and went downstairs. I decided to leave the mansion and have food outside. I wanted to explore things; we are in the capital. Meaning it has the highest population density in this kingdom, it ought to have some interesting foods, no? I left the knife that the Guildmaster made me, I did not think I would need it for shopping.


    ¡°Oh, you are going already?¡± The gate guard gently asked.


    ¡°Yes! I want to try the stuff that they sell in the capital. I don¡¯t know much about culture so it would be nice¡­¡± I sheepishly said, halfway through the sentence I realized how dumb it sounded. However, the gate guard wholeheartedly laughed.


    ¡°Is that so? I hope you have a good time. My job is pretty boring so chatting with you girls has given me a better time.¡± He smiled. I couldn¡¯t help but awkwardly nod, I was not really used with such interactions. After saying my goodbyes to the guard I exited the residential area. For some reason, it was normally pretty dead, which made it confusing for me.


    I headed towards the guilds in the direction of the castle. I saw various food stalls yesterday so something had to be good. I kept having eye contact with strangers so I started looking at the old cobblestone floor as I walked through the guilds. I noticed a dark wood stall that sold meat skewers. They looked really good! I approached the bearded bald man on the stall.


    ¡°How much are they?¡±


    He smiled. ¡°Oh, you have a sharp eye!"


    I tilted my head. "Is that so?"


    "Yes, they are from a rare rank A monster. They would normally be one silver coin. But for you.¡± He smiled. ¡°Only five copper coins. Seeing such an innocent and cute girl around makes me happy.¡± Eh¡­ You can just take my one silver coin if you are going to compliment me like that...


    I handed him a gold coin, he kind of froze but he gave me a skewer and change. ¡°Have a nice day¡­¡± He did not seem as cheerful as before¡­ I shrugged as I ate the juicy and soft meat, it was a nice meal. However, it was just a skewer with not that much meat. I was somewhat hungry, I also realized. Food was really cheap, which honestly, did not feel accurate. I mean, didn¡¯t that guy sold an apple barrel for one gold coin? As far as I know, meat should be more expensive. So that doesn¡¯t really make sense¡­ I wonder.


    I chewed some more meat before a stranger roughly bumped into me. He looked pretty shady and used a deteriorated cloak that covered his face. However, I did not really move from my spot from the bumping, it was... Not strong enough to move me, I noticed he tried to grab something but ended up grabbing the air, somewhat brushing against my cloak. I continued walking a bit, it was just a straight path towards the castle after all. The capital had a pretty straight-forward layout of three streets, one being the main one and the other being residential areas. Well, it did have a lot of pathways in-between, I thought the layout was pretty dumb, but I don¡¯t know much about infrastructure, besides, it seemed to work well.


    As I looked at the ground I saw a shadow move! I really did, well, I don¡¯t know if it was a shadow. It kind of looked like a cat, weirdly enough. It went into an alleyway, of course, I had to go and see inside the alleyway. Besides, I did not even need to go to the forge, it is just that I wanted to go. Derailing a bit wouldn¡¯t hurt much. I hurriedly went into the dirty alleyway, the walls were mossy and everything was dark. Then I saw a shadow surge from the wall, I started sensing presences near me, and soon enough I was surrounded by four people. Two in front of me, and two behind me.


    I quickly became confused. ¡°Do you need something?¡± I sheepishly asked.


    One of them just smiled. ¡°Yes, we just need your coin pouch, little noble girl.¡± I tilted my head yet again.


    ¡°Coin pouch?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t joke with me! I saw you pay one gold coin to the man in the stall!¡± He spat-out in annoyance. Well, that was fair enough. Except I did not really have a coin pouch or any pouches for that matter. As I was thinking, the man pointed his head at a cloaked person. It was the same guy from earlier.


    ¡°My friend over here tried to pickpocket you. But you had nothing! So, where are you hiding it? We clearly saw you put it inside your cloak,¡± he said in annoyance. I was still confused, they just wanted to rob me. But, they really couldn¡¯t, so the entire quarrel was pointless.


    ¡°Well¡­ I can¡¯t really give it to you.¡±


    He laughed. ¡°Don¡¯t worry we will get it from you if you can''t give it.¡± He pulled out a knife.


    I stiffened, but I had to think. These people think I am a child of some noble, wouldn¡¯t my supposed noble family have a lot of influence. I put on a bitter smile. ¡°What if my dad finds out?¡± They stopped moving.


    The leader that had been speaking to me just smiled. ¡°Ah, yes¡­ Your dad. I don¡¯t know your family, and I am well aware that noble leaders are way stronger than regular people. However, their kids tend to be really weak for some reason. Almost as if they just wanted their kids to not fight and get stronger¡­ Well, regardless. If we kill you right now and take your gold, even if your dad finds out. Nothing will happen. It happens very often, so it¡¯s not uncommon. So, girl. Gold or death.¡± I just stiffened again as he gave me an evil grin, my plan had backfired.


    I did not have combat experience, well I technically did but I didn¡¯t. Fighting a hell hound that spits lava is not the same as fighting a human that just wants to kill you because of greed. Also, the movements of monsters are way more monotone and easier to predict. This is outside my grade of expertise¡­ I also, did not have a weapon to defend myself since I had forgotten it. I stood there, frozen.


    ¡°Tch¡­ Looks like you¡¯d rather die. Let¡¯s do this guys¡­¡± He murmured something in regret but steeled himself and looked at me with murderous eyes. He tightly gripped his dagger and rushed me, trying to stab me right in the stomach with a tackle. However, I quickly noticed something... They were too slow. I moved aside and dodged him.


    His eyes were wide-open. I felt a sense of danger behind me and moved again. Soon enough, another dagger swiped to cut my neck. I quickly distanced from the group of four, they were coordinated and hard to deal with.


    ¡°Ohh¡­ What do we have here?¡± The leader was impressed. ¡°I did not know you were this agile. I wonder what that agility stat looks like?¡± Umm¡­ You probably don¡¯t want to know. ¡°Well, regardless. Your end is here?¡ª¡± A pained scream resounded throughout the back.


    They quickly distanced themselves, being careful to not get too close to me either. One of the guys had a sword stabbed in his chest. Blood trickling down and pelting the floor. The sword effortlessly slid out, leaving a limp body to dully crash on the ground. There stood an old woman with glasses and white hair.  Wearing a Chinese styled dress for some reason, she was fully dressed in black.


    The bandits were frozen. The leader recovered his composure. ¡°Tch¡­ Guys we have to go, it¡¯s a noble!¡± He hurriedly left, however, one of the guys froze.


    ¡°A noble? What could a no?¡ª¡± His head fell on the ground. I squinted my eyes as the pained screams resounded throughout the alleyway, it was way too much for me.


    I heard another dull sound and some sandpaper-like grinding. ¡°You wench! Do you think stepping on me will do something?¡± He grit his teeth. ¡°Because of you nobles and your bloodthirst, to evolve and get stronger. Just because of that, I have nothing left. My wife was killed, for being ¡®too strong¡¯. Do you think that is okay?!¡± He exclaimed in rage.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care¡­ I never did that, maybe the king did.¡± The old and raspy voice coldly responded. She sounded like a grandma. ¡°Well, regardless. You may find your wife now.¡± After those cold and eerie words, all I heard was almost total silence. The only sound I heard were the slow and rhythmic footsteps approaching me. I slowly opened my eyes, everything was stained in a deep red, it didn''t look real.


    The woman gently smiled at me. ¡°Girly are you okay?¡± I awkwardly nodded. ¡°Good, tell your dad or whatever that Lin saved you. He owes me one now.¡± Eh¡­


    ¡°I am not a noble¡­¡± I awkwardly admitted. The woman froze.


    ¡°You are not a noble?!¡± She grabbed her face in annoyance. ¡°Tch, I just saved a commoner, whatever. I will go now.¡± Eh¡­ She waved off and gave me her back as she left.


    I kind of felt bad so I opened my mouth once again. ¡°I know Firil, if that works for you¡­¡± She stood and looked back with wide eyes and a half-opened mouth.


    ¡°What did you just say?! Firil? As in the archmage?!¡± Before I knew it she was standing right in front of me.


    ¡°Eh¡­ Yes¡­ I am currently living with him due to special circumstances¡­¡± I scratched my head.


    ¡°I-Is that so¡­ Well. Tell Firil that Lin saved you.¡± This time she said it in a more submissive way.


    ¡°He doesn¡¯t owe you one?¡±


    ¡°Of course not!¡± She said somewhat red. ¡°Well, anyway. I have to go to a noble meeting at the castle. Apparently there is a new royal court mage. So we are supposed to test her and whatnot. Boring things.¡±


    ¡°I see¡­ Thanks for saving me, Lin.¡±


    ¡°You are welcome girly.¡± She patted me. ¡°Sorry about the thing I did¡­¡± She looked at the alleyway with a bitter face. ¡°Not something kids should see¡­¡± Well, the thing is¡­ This sight isn¡¯t really that strange¡­ Just, brutally killing people is not my thing.  ¡°Take care.¡± She started leaving again.


    ¡°Umm¡­ I am also going to the castle. Can I go?¡± She stopped again and looked in surprise.


    ¡°Well¡­ I don¡¯t know what business you have there, but I can tell you are important to some extent. Despite being a commoner.¡± She gestured me to go out of the alleyway. We stood in the main street. Once we were facing each other she extended her hand with a warm smile.


    ¡°I am Lin, master of the sword.¡± I gripped her rugged hand and smiled.


    ¡°Yami¡­ Um¡­ Blacksmith?¡± I said with doubt.


    ¡°Oh, a blacksmith eh? That¡¯s not normal. Well, I don¡¯t know much about boring things.¡± Did she just call it boring? ¡°Also, don¡¯t worry about the mess in the alleyway, it will get cleaned up.¡±


    I thought for a second, it was weird. ¡°Why is no one really interested in the alleyway?¡± People just looked at us, but completely ignored the screams from earlier. She gave me a bitter smile once again.


    ¡°Looks like you are from the outside, eh? Well, where to start?¡± She pondered for a second before giving me a stone-cold look. ¡°Murder is somewhat common here since it''s not really a punishable offense.¡± Her cold voice resounded in my ears.


    ¡°Why?¡± I instantly asked her.


    ¡°Beats me.¡± She shrugged. ¡°I assume it¡¯s only because one gets more experience from killing strong people than with monsters. The King is crazy with levels.¡± What is wrong with people? ¡°Don¡¯t put that panicked face, it¡¯s really not that common. After all, status reigns supreme. So one wouldn¡¯t want to mess with people. Besides, just because it¡¯s possible to kill someone it doesn¡¯t mean one will go on a killing spree.¡± I nodded to her fair explanation.


    ¡°Anyway, this is nothing you should worry about.¡± She patted me again. ¡°Let us go to the castle.¡± She started walking with the same sword in hand. I awkwardly followed.


    Alice.


    You can read 5 chapters ahead on my Patreon. o/

 (Chpt. 54) Discovering a new light (2)

    Alice.


    I kept following the woman, and I noticed, she still carried the sword. No scabbard or anything, just casually griping it and swaying it as she walked. I was... perplexed, to say the least.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Are you not going to put it away?¡± I asked with confusion.


    ¡°This?¡± She lifted the sword. ¡°Not really, it¡¯s impossible.¡± She seemed somewhat sad.


    ¡°Why?¡± I mean, that sounds silly.


    She did not seem to expect me to keep persuading and scratched her head as we walked. ¡°Well, you see. It¡¯s a cursed item. It¡¯s impossible for me to get rid of it.¡± She dropped it on the ground. The sword twitched and then came back to her hand. ¡°See?¡± I awkwardly nodded as we walked.


    The sword seemed rather unique. I decided to inspect it out of boredom and seeking discovery.


    [ Zeil¡¯s Lament ?¡ª Legendary (Cursed) ?¡ª The prized possession of a legendary lord; assassinated and stolen from him. He swore on his soul to get it back, even if it was the last thing he did.]


    ¡®How ironic¡­¡¯ I muttered.


    ¡°Hmm?¡± Did she hear me? She looked at me and then thought for a second and kept walking. The lady kind of heard me? Well, whatever, that is a very interesting sword. Basically he swore to get it back, but instead, it''s unretrievable. Ironic. Sadly, the skill does not provide detailed explanations and only core details. Which is good and bad. I stared fixedly at the sword trying to figure out something.


    The lady noticed my increasing curiosity for her sword as we walked, for some reason she did not say anything about it. I kept looking at the sword, I noticed that even though it was a silver blade; whenever it reached a shadow it became grey, whenever it reflected light on its surface, it would display some type of fractal rune pattern. It was¡­ pretty. I wondered if I could make something as pretty as that sword, but, I did not really know how to make such an effect happen. Would engraving the runes and then applying a special enchantment do the trick? I mean, enchanting weapons with special effects is possible. I just wonder how is it done? I mean, before it was kind of like a button press.


    ¡°This is where I leave you, girl.¡± She nonchalantly said as we stood in front of the unmovable pair castle guards, with the same attitude she patted me and turned back to the guards. One of them bowed and escorted her inside the castle, the other one stood in front of me to block me.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Thanks for saving me¡­¡± I sheepishly waved at her as she walked across the bridge. She waved back and smiled at me. The guard looked at me and waited for something.


    ¡°If you don¡¯t have business here, I need you to leave.¡± He firmly commanded me.


    ¡°Ah, yes¡­ One second.¡± I pulled the coin or whatever the thing was.


    The guard took it off my hand and examined it with a discerning eye, he gave it back and moved away as he opened the gate once again. I thanked him even though he did not reply, I went inside the castle towards the garden. First thing I noticed was, the atmosphere was somewhat tense, even though I literally saw no one, it just seemed desolate and grim. But that didn¡¯t concern me. I walked through the garden and saw a few gardeners. They seemed confused as I strode through it, but I didn''t particularly care either, I wasn''t really bothering them.


    Finally, I stood in front of the forge door. I heard some hammering. Not willing to wait much longer seeing someone was already working; I opened the hulking door without much problem and entered; closing it after I was inside.


    ¡°Oh, you are here!¡± The dwarf said with slight happiness. ¡°Want to join the craftsmen guild?¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± So sudden. ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­¡± I really didn¡¯t know, besides, don¡¯t I need a license for being smithing in general?


    He sighed. ¡°Whatever, you are in the guild now.¡± He threw something at me, it was a card. I managed to get a hold of it and inspected it. It was yet another guild card, and it also had a dog tag attached, it was black and looked to be made out of glass. I started reading the guild card and my eyes widened.


    ¡°You¡­ W-Why did you do this?! H-How did you do this?! W-Whe¡ª¡± My face was bright red.


    ¡°You don¡¯t like it?" He interrupted with slight worry. "The silver-haired girl said you would love it.¡± I am going to strangle her¡­ ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you are an obsidian ranked smith now. Besides, you even get to have two guild cards for separate identities, isn¡¯t that amazing? Even though it¡¯s kind of a shady thing... but I digress! Dan agreed, I did as well. So there you go.¡± I want to go poof...


    My legs lost force and I dropped on the ground. ¡®This is meaningless¡­ Why would I want to be a renowned blacksmith that is known as ¡®Dark shadow¡¯. Besides, that¡¯s not even the real meaning of my name Aizen got it wrong! It¡¯s¡­ Black darkness... Ahhh! Regardless of how it sounds. I want to disappear! This is shameful, too much to bear¡­ I-I¡­ How am I going to face Ari if she ever finds out what my name truly means¡­ Impossible. This is impossible!¡¯


    ¡°Oi girly, why are you looking so down? I have to say¡­¡± He flashed me a bright smile. ¡°That name is really cool. I am jealous¡­¡±


    ¡°I-Is it?¡± I asked with a bitter smile.


    ¡°Yes, it is! Be proud!¡± You know, if I was fourteen years old, I would. But I am technically an adult at this point. Ahhhh¡­ This is depressing... I wobbly got up and made my way to the seats from yesterday. I sat down and looked at the sky with sadness and regret.


    ¡°Are you going to look at the sky all day?¡± I frowned hearing the dwarf.


    ¡°It hasn¡¯t even been a minute, shut it.¡± I coldly replied his question, I wasn¡¯t really in the mood for anything like this. The dwarf did not seem to have time to bother me as he started working on weapons, I noticed that this time there was more than one anvil. Was one for me? How thoughtful. But, I did not really know how to feel about being an anonymous obsidian ranked smith. I mean, what happens now? Do I sell my work, do I just smith and think about it later? The later sounds like literally the worst way to deal with this.


    I looked at the sky, watching the slowly passing clouds on the nice and azure background. Air passing by, lightly brushing against my skin, refreshing and relaxing as ever. Birds chirping and flying about, rhythmic metal hammering and crackling from the furnace. It was so peaceful and so relaxing, I felt like I could stay in such a place forever. Unfortunately, I knew it wasn¡¯t possible, but I still enjoyed it. It was nice.


    I thought about the request Aizen made yesterday. Scale armor was it? I mean, doing the scales could be done with a mithril sheet or something. The problem is where to mount the scales, I am pretty sure they could always be mounted on cloth, however, Aizen is always wearing her coat. Wouldn¡¯t just mounting them in chainmail armor achieve the same thing. I could totally see a way to pierce the scales into the chainmail rings. Hmm... I am just overthinking it, I can just make the armor out of scales connecting it with rings. The problem is making the rings for the armor¡­ I am not looking forward to it at all. How many rings does one need? I am pretty sure it¡¯s somewhere around from twenty-thousand to thirty-thousand¡­ Sigh. I am already feeling lazy?¡ª


    BOOOM!


    ¡°W-What?!¡± My thought process was completely shattered by an ear-piercing explosion. Before I knew it, I was on the ground looking at the cold and fresh grass. The walls trembled, it took me a second to realize, but I was thrown off my seat by the shaking. The dwarf was somewhat startled for a second but looked my way.


    ¡°I heard that they are replacing the royal mage leader or whatever it was. Apparently they make every new mage use their strongest spell. Although¡­ I wonder, what kind of spell we would need to make something like this¡­¡± He shrugged. ¡°Don¡¯t mind it too much, the king wouldn¡¯t recruit a mage that he can¡¯t beat.¡± Haha¡­ What kind of mage would be able to cause an explosion like that?!


    I got up from the ground and wiped the dirt from my face. That explosion was way too much, however, it got me off my seat. So I guess I should just make something instead. What will it be? Should I get started on the armor? Does it even need to be armor? If she wants it for the sake of looking like scales, I could just make her scale gauntlets instead. I mean, I am sure she would like them better anyway. Yeah, I will do that. It saves me time as well.


    I moved back to the forge and opened the chest that had the metals inside. ¡°Hey dwarf, can I use the mithril here?¡± He stopped hammering.


    ¡°Normally I would say you can¡¯t, but honestly, it is not my mithril... So... I don¡¯t care.¡± Hee shrugged.¡±I can just report we ran out of mithril and the chest will be refilled. So, go ahead.¡± How straightforward¡­ Alright then. I paused as I lifted the mithril ingot. I had no iron wire to chain into the chainmail or rather scalemail now.


    ¡°Dwarf do you have a drawing plate?¡± I asked with zero hope. He stopped his hammering and looked at me with confusion.


    ¡°Well, yes. Why do you need one? We don¡¯t even make wires here.¡± He had one!


    ¡°I want to make chainmail.¡± He became confused.


    ¡°Chainmail?¡± He thought for a second. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Eh¡­


    Wasn¡¯t chainmail around in medieval times? Then what do they use? Leather, or just platedr?!


    ¡°Um¡­ What kind of armor do people use then?¡± I asked with slight fear.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s obvious!¡± he exclaimed. ¡°Full plated armor!¡±


    What?! ¡°What do you use below the plated armor then?¡± I asked with confusion.


    He thought and looked at me as if I was stupid. ¡°Well, clothing of course!¡±


    Huh?! ¡°But, what about the connections for the legs and arms...¡±


    ¡°Ah, those? Well, you normally use enchanted clothes. It¡¯s easier for the person inside to suffer from the blunt force of the hit than to bleed or get something chopped off! Of course, we are just talking about average people. If we are talking about the king, then¡­ No amount of Rare armor or enchanted clothing will stop your arm from getting chopped off.¡±


    So, basically... Technology is kind of stale because of enchantment? So, who needs a different type of sword to do the job when you can just enchant it to do whatever job? Is that how this happened? Sigh¡­ What a problem. So chainmail doesn¡¯t exist? Well, whatever. It¡¯s not like it¡¯s better than plated armor.


    ¡°I see¡­ Let me just borrow your drawing plate. I am going to make chainmail anyway. It¡¯s an armor made out of interconnected rings that tends to be rather light and is worn below plated armor.¡± I concisely explained the concept to the dwarf. He laughed as he looked for something near the back of the forge.


    ¡°I see. Just have fun with your silly ideas then!¡± He returned back to hammering. I noticed there was a hefty metal plate on the ground with a lot of holes. I mean a lot of various sized holes. It was a drawing plate, for well¡­ Drawing metal. I wanted to make the wire for the scalemail, or chainmail¡­ or whatever. Making the scales will be another challenge, but I will worry about it when I am done drawing the iron wire.


    I made my way to the chest and started working on an iron ingot. Heating it up and slowly but surely hammering it; flattening it and making it slim and long, then hammering it on its sides over and over again, trying to get it symmetrical. It took just a few minutes to make it into a long iron rod, I just needed somewhere to anneal it, or just a place for it to slowly cool down. I noticed there was a pile of sand somewhere in the distance. I decided it would work as insulation for the metal even though it could make the sand somewhat crystalize. But, all for the sake of the armor, besides, how bad could it be?


    Alice.


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 (Chpt. 55) Discovering a new light (3)

    Alice.


    ¡°This takes too long¡­¡± I muttered as I looked at the sky, I had been waiting for the past three hours or so, thankfully there was no more earthquakes or mage testing, or whatever the dwarf called it. But, I was still stuck waiting on a piece of metal to cool down. I had not done anything, and then it dawned on me¡­


    ¡°I am stupid aren¡¯t I?¡± I had been waiting for the iron, but I had not made anything else, by that I mean ¡ª I was supposed to also work on the scales for the scale armor I going to make. Well, looks like I will be making gauntlets instead, mostly because I forgot about it...


    I shrugged and stood up from my seat.


    ¡°Oh, you are finally moving girly, you scared me for a second¡­¡± The dwarf commented, he seemed busy as he hadn¡¯t stopped making swords, I felt bad for him. ¡°I was thinking of asking you for help, but then I remembered I would also have to pay you.¡± He shrugged.


    I tilted my head. ¡°Pay me for what? Are all the swords you are making from an order?¡±


    ¡°Indeed they are, how sharp of you. Anyway, since you are registered now you can take orders whenever you feel like it, ah¡­¡± He stopped hammering. ¡°If you do decide to work here you are obliged to pay me ten-percent of whatever you  sell your work for, the metal won¡¯t pay itself.¡± Eh¡­ ¡°Anyway, I am sure you¡¯d get a lot of orders, obsidian smiths are rare after all!¡± He started laughing.


    I couldn¡¯t help but be confused, I wasn¡¯t intending on selling my things, at least for now, it¡¯s probably the worst idea right now, besides, if I add the symbol every time I do something it will probably be for the worst. Sigh¡­ Can¡¯t it be easier?


    ¡°Well, girly, weren¡¯t you going to make something?¡± He asked with curiosity.


    ¡°...¡± I wordlessly looked at him, I had forgotten why I even stood up, it was to get the mithril of course. The dwarf paused and looked at me with confusion, I hurriedly nodded in awkwardness before I rushed to the chest; I took out the mithril bar and placed it on top of the anvil I had to think. I knew very well how to do the chainmail as well as add the scales, but I had no idea how to make the scales themselves. Never really did something like this. I wonder.


    I pulled out my chisel and my hammer, with a gulp, I hit the mithril with the tip of my tool once, it felt wrong. I instantly tilted my head, it was wrong but I couldn¡¯t come up with any other way. I decided to make it as if I was engraving something, gently tapping the back of the chisel to try to carve out something on the side of the ingot. It still felt wrong.


    I kept trying other things but couldn¡¯t really arrive at an answer, if I could just mold the metal however I wanted it¡­ I thought about smelting it, but¡­ It was tedious, as far as I knew, I would need to use a blast furnace for that, I am sure there are no blast furnaces here. Also, even if there was, I wasn¡¯t willing to wait an entire day for the process to be done.


    After looking at the ingot with defeat I started thinking again, mithril is soft by nature, so it probably won¡¯t even make the best armor, tempering does help it have some kind of memory and retain its shape, but if it dents then one needs to repair it. Well, I am sure there is some kind of self-regenerating material out there. I just need to think of how to make the scales.


    I looked at the white mithril ingot, which was full of scratches at this point. I had to think on how to make the scales out of it,  and in that instant I facepalmed. It was a soft metal¡­ After my realization I started hammering the ingot without heating, it was probably the worst decision I had ever made objectively speaking. But I did not struggle in shaping the mithril how I wanted it, it made me wonder why would I heat it to shape it if I could just do it?


    ¡°Oi, girly, what are you doing?!¡±


    The dwarf came rushing to my side as I brutally hammered the ingot. I tilted my head. ¡°What does it look like I am doing?¡±


    ¡°It looks to me like you are trying to ruin the ingot!¡± He yelled as he examined the ingot. ¡°Eh¡­¡± he became confused. ¡°T-This isn¡¯t even mithril anymore¡­¡± He muttered with defeat and slight difficulty.


    ¡°Eh?¡± I became confused.


    ¡°Girly, do you know how mithril is made?¡± I just shook my head. The dwarf sighed. ¡°You see, mithril tends to be overloaded with mana, that¡¯s why it¡¯s so amazing, well¡­ I don¡¯t really understand that part. Anyway, this ¡°mithril¡± right here, if you can call it that anymore, somehow or in some way, you managed to hammer the mana out of it!¡± Eh¡­


    ¡°So, if it is no longer mithril, then what is it?¡± I asked in confusion.


    ¡°Well¡­ I don¡¯t know either..." He paused before turning somewhat red. "You know what?! Just do whatever you want. Just don¡¯t ruin the metals¡­¡± He walked away in annoyance. I was confused.


    I looked back at the supposed no longer mithril, I noticed that it no longer shone in a blue light instead, it just shone white like a piece of marble. It was a flat slab of marble I had just created, a mistake, I made a mistake! The game mithril did not work like that at all... Is this even in the game, to begin with?! I don¡¯t get it at all!


    I decided to hit it one more time a lot softer, it cracked¡­ It literally cracked as if it was a piece of marble! Sigh¡­ I guess I should just work with something more familiar, I wonder if he has some.


    ¡°Dwarf, do you have eternal mithril?¡± He stopped hammering.


    ¡°What did you just say?¡± He looked at me with his utmost attention.


    ¡°D-Do you have eternal mithril?¡± I asked in nervousness. This time he did not ask back and started thinking for a few seconds and muttering things.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know how much you know about that metal, but no. Why would I have eternal mithril, it¡¯s impossible to work with, and even if it was workable, I still wouldn¡¯t have it. Why would I keep eternal mithril near normal-mithril?!¡± He shouted as if it was obvious.


    ¡°Um¡­ Why not?¡± I decided to still ask, I was curious.


    He sighed. ¡°Sometimes I wonder if you are a talented smith or just a child playing the smith role¡­¡± Hey! ¡°Anyway, a little lesson for you girly. Eternal mithril is in the name, it¡¯s eternal, it feeds off the ambient mana to exist, therefore if you put it next to normal mithril it will drain mithril out of its energy, you understand now?¡± I nodded and started thinking.


    ¡®So, I basically destroyed the mithril I was working on with my hammer?¡¯ I looked at the obsidian-black hammer I was holding. ¡®I thought it was the coolest material to make a hammer out of, who would¡¯ve thought it would be so inconvenient? Now that I think about it, it¡¯s my first time hammering mithril with this hammer, it has been a long time since I used normal mithril. Who would¡¯ve thought it would destroy the ingot¡­ Sigh¡­ What a failure¡­¡¯


    I looked at the now marble slab that was once a piece of beautiful mithril, I bit my lip and couldn¡¯t even bring myself to look at it for more than a few seconds, it was too painful knowing I had just ruined something because of my naiveness. I extended my hand towards it to dispose of it, it was completely useless at this point¡­ I wanted to tear-up on the spot, how could I go forth knowing I am such a failure¡­


    I grabbed the useless slab with sorrow and despair, I had made such a stupid mistake, how coul?¡ª Ehhhh?! It started feeling tingly on my hands, making me leave it again, and suddenly the sensation stopped, it felt like the slab was vibrating somewhat. It made my arms feel like jelly¡­I looked at the slab, it was unchanged. ¡°Must be my imagination¡­¡± I dismissed with a shrug.


    I picked the slab and I was assaulted by the same sensation, but it must¡¯ve been my imagination, soon enough the jelly sensation stopped, but I felt weird. It felt like something had been taken away from me. I felt sick in a way. I kept holding the slab and made my way to the side of the forge, which seemed to be full of metal scraps and whatnot. I looked back at the useless slab, it was now dark and not even white anymore. I couldn¡¯t help but tilt my head.


    It twitched¡­ I hurriedly shook my head, and the slab was well¡­ a piece of metal or stone, whatever it was at this point, there was no way it could''ve twitched. Must have been my imagination, coping with the fact that I did something wrong, it might just be guilt hunting me over the poor metal I murdered¡­ That must¡¯ve been it, I felt some connection with the slab, but it was probably still guilt. Without thinking too much about it I threw it to the pile of scrap, making a loud crashing sound, but that was the end of the story. Then I heard more metal clashing and moving, I looked back.


    ¡°Eek!¡± It had turned sentient! Shooo! I started smacking it with my hammer, was it even metal at this point, it was moving! I kept viciously hammering it, then it went from a dark tone back to the white one.


    ¡°Girly keep it down! I am working here!¡± The dwarf shouted from a distance.


    I sighed¡­ What was that? The slab was ¡°moving¡± it was squirming like a worm rather than actually moving, but I could¡¯ve sworn it was alive. But it was back to being a useless rock slab rather than actual metal. I had a panic attack, I thought the metal was back to murder me for wasting it, but I guess it wasn¡¯t the case¡­ I looked back at the now unmoving fractured slab, it was back to its white tone rather than the dark one.


    I had to rethink what just happened. I grabbed it and felt tingly, then it turned darkish and sentient¡­ Sounds like a curse¡­ Then I hit it with my hammer multiple times, which somehow dispelled said curse. Oddly enough I no longer felt the strange connection of guilt I had with the slab previously. Maybe¡­ Just maybe¡­ No, what are you thinking there is no way that is possible¡­


    I touched the slab again which made my arm feel like a sponge and lost its strength, but I kept touching it. Then the slab turned dark once again and the guilt connection was back, the slab wasn¡¯t squirming around¡­ I think, yeah it should be fin?¡ª


    ¡°Eek!¡± Shoo! I started smacking it again, it was moving again! What is this sorcery!? After more smacking, it became white again, but I think I had something to work on for now. It wasn¡¯t a curse.


    Based on what the dwarf told me, eternal mithril takes mana, that¡¯s why it¡¯s eternal. So, the slab stopped moving because I hit it with my hammer out of all things. So, I can at least say, it had mana in it. The mana was probably mine, which would explain the strange connection I felt. But the mithril absorbing my mana? That¡¯s a new one¡­ So, thinking about it absorbing the mana, isn¡¯t it eternal mithril at this point?!


    I felt a connection because it was my mana¡­ What if¡­


    I touched the slab for the third time, which again, made my arm feel like jelly and it turned dark. The slab started squirming in its place, which made me slightly panic but it wasn¡¯t nearly as bad as the previous times. I concentrated on the slab, I could somehow feel it existed. As in another extension of me, I started paying my utmost attention and it and tried to make it not move. It kept twitching for a second or so and then it stopped. Then make it move¡­ With a bit of imagination, I imagined it would shape into a rod, I imagined the process of it slowly molding into a rod and it worked!


    ¡°Hahaha! I have mastered telekinesis!¡± I shouted in excitement. I could bend this mithril at will! What fun things could I make I wonder¡­ I am excited for this new thing?¡ª Eh? What is this?! Why is the world turning blurry?! Why is my vision blue now? Oh... that''s the sky... Wait... why is the sky falling?! No... I am falling! Why am I falling?! What is happening?! I fainted.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 56) Testing the limits (1)

    Alice.


    ?Aizen?


    ¡°Fenri, how do you think the castle visit is going to go?¡±


    Fenri stopped walking and tilted his head, he thought for a second. ¡°Woof!¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Well, I guess it didn¡¯t matter.


    We continued walking after leaving Firil¡¯s mansion, leaving Kuro in confusion and Ari with the old man and Dan. It went well¡­


    * * *


    ¡°Hey, I will need you guys to take care of Ari!¡±


    ¡°Umm¡­ Why are we here?!¡± Ari asked in a panic after I barged through the old man''s door.


    The old man and Dan were drinking, they both paused in surprise and looked at me. The old man was the first one to speak.


    ¡°W-What are you even doing here? Aren¡¯t you supposed to be in classes?!¡±


    ¡°... Sigh, why are you always like this?¡± Dan was more collected.


    I shrugged. ¡°So, will you? I have important things to attend to¡­¡± I said as I nonchalantly inspected my hand for no reason, it looked cool and made me look like I didn¡¯t care.


    ¡°A mage¡¯s number priority is study!¡± The old man exclaimed as he rose from his desk.


    ¡°¡°Yet you are drinking¡­¡±¡± Dan and I mentioned the obvious, the old man flinched.


    ¡°I-It¡¯s part of my new meditation method¡­¡± He looked to the side and took a very large sip of his glass.


    ¡°Cough!¡± Dan gathered our attention. ¡°What is so important that you cannot take her with you? I mean, you guys took her to a subjugation, so¡­ Explain.¡±  Dan seemed oddly demanding.


    I smiled. ¡°I will be replacing the elf.¡±


    ¡°Ah okay.¡± Although for some reason, Dan did not seem to care after he heard me.


    ¡°You will¡­¡± The old man trailed into a mutter. ¡°Is it the elf that escaped?¡±


    ¡°He escaped? Geez old man, if you are going to threaten me into being a substitute teacher at least do your job right¡­¡± I nodded to Dan¡¯s comment.


    ¡°T-That is not the point!¡± He slammed the desk. ¡°Such a talented student is meddling in the dark arts¡­¡± He wiped a tear from his eye. ¡°I will not allow it! You must continue your journey in magic and surpass me!¡± He broke into muttering as he bit on his rugged finger and looked at his desk.


    ¡°What is he on about?¡± I asked Dan.


    ¡°No idea¡­¡±


    ¡°Umm¡­ If you guys can¡¯t take care of me then I guess I could just stay with Firil¡­¡± Ari awkwardly joined in.


    ¡°Ah, don¡¯t worry Ari. You can stay with me, I am still Dan." Dan was friendly as always, he gave a glance to his side. "... unlike Lynn¡­¡±


    ¡°Unforgivable!¡± He flailed his arms around. ¡°Aizen, I challenge you to a magic duel! You won¡¯t be replacing the elf any time soon!¡±


    ¡°Yeahh¡­ He does that¡­¡± Dan wryly smiled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡±


    ¡°Dan, don¡¯t intervene! This is for the greater future of a new generation!¡±


    ¡°Will everything be alright?¡± Ari asked with slight concern.


    Dan stood up and approached Ari, he patted her with a smile. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the old man, he went senile years ago.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know you were good with kids.¡± I added.


    ¡°Well¡­ I didn¡¯t know that either, must be the alcohol.¡± He nodded in satisfaction to his own explanation. ¡°Anyway Ari, as long as you are okay with me then I guess it¡¯s fine.¡±


    ¡°Dan is fine¡­¡± Ari sheepishly said.


    I couldn¡¯t help but be a bit confused, I expected some resistance from Ari or something from the other side. Well, I did get the old man but¡­ Not that kind of resistance. Dan looked at me as I thought.


    ¡°Don¡¯t think about it too much, it¡¯s not like I will do anything. But now you owe me one.¡± He nonchalantly informed me¡­ Sigh Dan, if it¡¯s gonna be like that then you leave me no choice.


    ¡°Hey Dan come here.¡± I gestured with my finger.


    ¡°What do you want all of the sudden?¡± As soon as Dan got close enough I grabbed his sleeve. ¡°What are you¡­?¡ª It¡¯s on fire! Stop it! Aizen!¡± I stopped the burning on Dan¡¯s sleeve, his entire sleeve was missing but his skin was alright.


    ¡°There, I saved you your life, now we are even.¡±


    ¡°You are too extreme¡­¡± Dan muttered in defeat. ¡°Ari, please tell me you won¡¯t set me on fire.¡±


    ¡°... Is that even a question?¡± Ari tilted her head in confusion, I never really intended on hurting Dan, his sleeve just looked at me in a menacing way. It had to go.


    ¡°Sigh¡­ Whatever... Aizen you may go.¡± Dan dismissed me in his defeat.


    ¡°No, I will do whatever I can!¡± The old man was monologuing in the background.


    ¡°Well, I will come back as soon as I am done. Dan¡­¡± I looked at him in the eye. ¡°You better take care of her.¡±


    ¡°Yes I got it, I will die. No need to put it in such an obvious way.¡± Dan said with indifference.


    * * *


    I nodded as I recalled how it went. It truly went well, nothing to worry about, indeed. I am sure Dan will do a good job of taking care of her. He at least knows his limits, that is for sure.


    I kept walking with Fenri as he wagged his tail. We entered the main plaza without much problem, I was missing the house crest thing. But, somehow the guards ignored me, so, I guess there was no need to do some talking. I saw street vendors, people chat; kids point at Fenri, some looked at me. It was weird. As I scanned my surroundings I saw a familiar figure buying food. I didn¡¯t plan on greeting him, but I suddenly remembered something. I smiled as I arrived next to him. Fenri followed with confusion, I think it was his first encounter with him.


    ¡°Hey dwarf.¡±


    His shoulders stiffened. ¡°I don¡¯t know what business you have with me, but my name is Alron!¡± He looked at me. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s you¡­ What do you want?¡± He asked with annoyance.


    ¡°Hey so I¡¯ve been thinking¡­?¡ª¡±


    ¡°Keep thinking, I am busy. Leave me alone.¡± He turned around back to the vendor, he wasn¡¯t really following the situation as he maintained his smile with a bit of a struggle.


    ¡°How hostile¡­ And I thought that you wanted her to join the craftsman guild.¡±


    His ears perked up. ¡°Her?¡± He turned around with interest.


    ¡°Oh, you know¡­ The girl that added ¡®the mark¡­¡¯¡± I kept it ambiguous but his eyes instantly widened.


    ¡°You got my attention now girly, yeah I wanted her to join the guild, so?¡±


    I smiled. ¡°So, I talked to her, she seems ¡°insecure¡± about joining because of her identity, she fears that it will cause her trouble.¡±


    The dwarf thought for a second and nodded. ¡°Okay, I am following. So?"


    I kept my smile up. ¡°Well, she said she would join if she could have another identity, you know, not use the same guild card.¡±


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Yeah, I can do that, I just need a name.¡±


    ¡°Dark Shadow.¡± I said as I struggled not to laugh.


    ¡°Wow, okay, she has some imagination. I admire such a nice name.¡± He commented as he looked back at the vendor. ¡°Keep the change, I am in a good mood right now.¡±


    ¡°But??¡ª¡± The vendor raised his voice.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡±


    I couldn¡¯t help but feel bewildered. ¡®He actually did not laugh¡­ Well¡­ There it goes like 90% of the reason I did this, I wanted him to mock her for it¡­ Sigh¡­¡¯ I dropped my shoulders in disappointment. The dwarf turned back to me.


    ¡°Thanks for the info girly, I will check things out with Dan, I will try to reward you later.¡± I nodded as he left to the guild. He left at a quick pace with little hopes here and there. I think he was overjoyed. Well, objectively speaking, I could see why.


    ¡°Woof¡­¡± Fenri glared at me.


    ¡°Well, I ought to have fun every once in a while with her, otherwise it¡¯s boring.¡± I explained myself, however, Fenri still seemed upset about my ¡°prank¡±, but I didn¡¯t really care.


    ¡°Oh, look! She is talking with the dog!¡± A kid pointed.


    Then a lot of kids started pointing at me and Fenri. ¡°Well¡­ There goes my happiness for the day... This is annoying¡­¡± I muttered as I started walking away. The kids did not follow us, which frankly made me feel relieved.


    Fenri and I continued walking down the cobblestone road, it was somewhat busy seeing it was still early morning, people did not really pay attention to us seeing they were too busy doing their things; it was a relief in a sense. Although kids did not fail to notice Fenri and try to pet him before their parents stopped them, it was¡­ weird. Stand vendors called out to people; including us. I just ignored them, didn¡¯t really carry money anyway.


    We kept walking straight for quite some time, it took quite a bit, the streets that were busy were somewhat empty now. Mostly because the places near the castle were no longer inns, and more like expensive places as well as restaurants instead of stalls. The closer you got to the castle the more expensive things became.


    It was eh¡­ Sometimes annoying, since the few remaining people would take notice of us much easier, it didn¡¯t help that my hair was bright silver and I was walking with a wolf; it would be a long day. We approached the castle gates, the guards seemed oddly stiff for some reason. I walked forward and as expected.


    ¡°Stop! Declare your business here.¡± One of the guards said with a firm voice.


    I tilted my head. ¡°Isn¡¯t it obvious?¡± I mean, if the king invited me then they should know, it¡¯s not like I am expecting too much or anything ?¡ª the guard frowned.


    ¡°Don¡¯t joke around kid, go play with your dog or something.¡± He grumbled in annoyance.


    ¡°Grr!¡± Fenri growled at him, I guess he didn¡¯t like getting called dog. The guard just clicked his tongue and ignored him as he kept glaring daggers at me, I yawned..


    The other guard had been thinking for quite some time now. After tilting his head, suddenly his eyes went wide and his complexion became pale. He approached the guard that was standing in front of us and tapped his shoulder in a hurry.


    ¡°What do you want? I am busy...¡±


    The pale guard just pulled him aside and started muttering to him. The initial hostile guard meekly approached and looked at me with a fearful expression and a bit of regret. He gulped before opening his mouth.


    ¡°I am sorry about that¡­ Please go through the gate¡­¡± He clumsily bowed after that, the other guard followed as well. Then both of them moved away and that was it. Fenri tilted his head since he wasn¡¯t following the development, but I guess it was fine.


    I forcibly smiled at the guards since they were trembling, I didn¡¯t really want to play villain here. They seemed to relax a little as I started walking with Fenri to my side. I didn¡¯t really get to see the castle up-close, but it was very¡­ Hmm¡­ Well, it was aesthetic.


    The castle had another gate-like entrance, although it was missing the actual gate; the arches stood tall with fine engravings and windows here and there. I continued walking as I observed, the architectural feats, then I looked forward and I noticed the path we were following led straight to an indoor garden. Then it would split into two, weird layout if you asked me.


    I couldn¡¯t help but tilt my head, the hallways were absolutely empty; the only source of light were the windows near the ceiling, it gave a very open feel for some reason. It didn¡¯t really feel like a castle, but that wasn¡¯t really the problem, the problem was that I absolutely had no idea where I was inside the castle, I also had no idea where the king was.


    I dropped my shoulders. ¡°If you are going to invite me at least tell me where¡­¡± I murmured.


    ¡°Oh, but I did tell you. In the castle¡­¡± I turned around and followed the voice. There he stood, it was the king.

 (Chpt. 57) Testing the limits (2)

    Alice.


    ¡°Took you long enough¡­¡± I muttered in annoyance as I tried to hide my surprise. I didn¡¯t really notice his appearance at all.


    He smiled. ¡°Looks like we have a special one over here, well, it¡¯s not like the statement is wro?¡ª Oh, what a cute dog¡­¡± His voice trailed off as he looked at my furry companion. Fenri stiffened and sheepishly hid behind me. ¡°Not very friendly, eh?¡±


    I shrugged. ¡°I guess¡­ Not my cat.¡±


    ¡°Grrr¡­¡± Well, I guess cat wasn¡¯t the way to go about it.


    ¡°Well if you say so, that¡¯s a rather peculiar cat you got there¡­¡± Fenri growled again. ¡°Well, moving on. I must congratulate you, you are now part of the Royal Court.¡±


    ¡°And¡­ What do I need to do?¡± I asked as I tilted my head, I had just remembered it was some kind of role, so he was probably going to throw responsibilities at me and such.


    ¡°Well, nothing much really. Just come when summoned?¡ª¡±


    ¡°Summoned?¡± What?!


    He scratched his cheek. ¡°Well, you know¡­ Summoned, like¡­ Called? Like¡­ ¡°Come here,¡± kind of thing?¡± Oh¡­ I am stupid, aren¡¯t I? ¡°Well, now that you understand that. It¡¯s basically that and to protect the country in case of emergency, and that¡¯s about it. You also get paid for it.¡± Well, this suddenly sounded like a me kind of job. ¡°Don¡¯t get too excited just yet, you must still take a meeting.¡±


    I tilted my head. ¡°Meeting?¡±


    ¡°Oh, you know¡­ Meeting with other nobles and stuff so they deem you ¡°worthy¡± of being a court magician, don¡¯t worry. Since you got my recommendation I can just shove it on them, but I am not very keen on being forceful on absolutely everyone.¡± Eh¡­ Well, I guess¡­


    There was still something that concerned me. ¡°Are these nobles like the school kids?¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­ No¡­ Don¡¯t even joke about that, I would¡¯ve gotten rid of all of them if they were like that¡­¡± He explained with a cold sweat, I guess the kids were really annoying.


    ¡°Okay then¡­ So, what will I need to do to ¡°prove¡± myself?¡±


    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry about it, you will just have to use your absolute strongest spell on a target.¡± Well¡­ I am screwed, aren¡¯t I? I can either burn it which probably will be meh or try using neutral magic on it which basically won¡¯t show any effect for the most part. Of course, I could always use the more extreme side of neutral magic, but I am sure people will be able to tell at first glance, and since it¡¯s forbidden I don¡¯t feel like being crucified at the moment. Well¡­ I will see what I can do, I can always just say I am a prodigy and use neutral magic and say it¡¯s a new kind of magic. If they can tell I will just have to insist, the king doesn¡¯t really seem like a mage anyway.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± The king asked as he tilted his head with slight confusion.


    ¡°... Yea¡­¡± Looks like I stood still as I thought¡­ Well, what a problem.


    ¡°Anyway, I am going to need you to follow me.¡± He turned around and started moving.


    Fenri and I followed him along the long hallway, with rooms every now and then either side, it was speckless and shiny, the rock looked really polished and worked to perfection. For some reason it still followed the same color pattern as the outside, so it was somewhat bright, but since it was mostly lit by natural light coming from crevices and windows near the ceiling, it wasn¡¯t eye-damaging. So that was nice.


    ¡°Why is everything so¡­ White?¡± I asked out of curiosity as I followed the king. He paused.


    ¡°Well¡­ I like white. Besides, white is a nice color and tends to be associated with the concept of being good, so there is that.¡± I nodded to his bland answer. He continued walking aftewards, we followed as I got to thinking.


    ¡®Being good? Isn¡¯t that like¡­ Some dumb thing for kids? You know. Darkness is evil and light is good? Well, I think it was like that anyway, while I like white more than black as a color, it really isn¡¯t a good reason to make it entirely white. I mean, there must have been something else, something more pleasant to the eye. Well, I don¡¯t think I will be able to change to color, unfortunately.¡¯


    I sighed in defeat. We continued walking for quite a while, I noticed the hallway had a slight curvature, so I assumed it was connected with the other side of the castle. Mostly because we had walked for way too long for the castle to be endless. I think it also had some elevation, well¡­ I didn¡¯t really notice it, but we should¡¯ve passed by the garden already if it was just a loop.


    ¡°Looks like you noticed.¡± I tilted my head in confusion. ¡°The castle structure is weird, I think so as well¡­ It¡¯s basically a big spiral with a central garden.¡± He nonchalantly informed me.


    I remember it having towers though¡­ ¡°And¡­ the towers?¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­ That? It¡¯s just an illusion, don¡¯t worry about it too much. I heard it''s made from a relic,¡± He dropped his shoulders. ¡°Although I wish I knew where it was.¡± He audibly murmured.


    I didn¡¯t bother replying, but it felt weird. Was the king like this? Well¡­ What was the previous king like?  I wonder about that, also, if I beat this person could I be the new king? That sounds great! Although¡­ Running a kingdom sounds like a disaster, so I think I will keep that out of my mind for now. Well, I could always just take the title and do absolutely nothing, but it probably won¡¯t be a great idea once it starts falling apart.


    ¡°Why must everything be so complicated¡­¡± I sighed in defeat as I continued walking. ¡°Ou¡­¡± I bumped into something hard and solid, almost like a wall, taking a step back all I could see was something akin to a curtain made out of fur.


    ¡°Woof.¡± Was it Fenri? Well, it wasn¡¯t white.


    ¡°We are here.¡± It was the king¡¯s voice, although I had no idea where he was. ¡°Also, please don¡¯t bump into my back. It hurts.¡± Oh¡­ So that¡¯s how it was. I took a step back and I was no longer right behind him. There was a tall metal-framed wooden door. The metal had rusting and the wood seemed dry and old. My assessment of the door was that it was old, as obvious as it was. It seemed out of place, it was the only thing that looked remotely old after all.


    ¡°Ah right¡­ We still need to renovate this place, don¡¯t let it bother you too much. It¡¯s just that you are the first court mage to come here since I became king.¡± Oh.


    ¡°How so?¡±


    ¡°Well, the elf was appointed by the previous king, although he was never a nice person to begin with, so I never really understood how he got there. Anyway, this is the board room." He sighed. "Where we will be for quite some time.¡± Ah, so that''s how it was. I looked at the door, I noticed the hallway continued but there was no more doors. I saw light coming from the end of it, I think it was the roof of the castle or whatever.


    ¡°Are you going to the practice range or coming into the meeting room?¡± He asked as he lifted his brow.


    ¡°Practice range?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s on the rooftop, anyway, not going there right now. Just come into the room.¡± He waved his hand at me, I awkwardly approached and entered the room. As opposed to the all-white marble of the castle, this room had gray walls and was dimly lit by a chandelier, the bricks of the walls were worn down, I swiped my finger on them and it got full of dust. ¡°Yeah¡­ It does that.¡± He commented as he saw me clean it.


    ¡°Anyway, ignoring the dust. Just sit there.¡± He pointed across the room. I noticed a big wooden table, it was also dry. Following his finger, it was pointing at a single chair in the myriad of surrounding chairs next to the table, it was right next to a big and more imponent chair. It didn¡¯t take too much thinking to guess whose chair it was. I wordlessly nodded and just sat on the chair as per instructed, didn¡¯t really have anything to do. The chair badly creaked, the room was probably a few centuries outdated. Fenris uneasily made his way to my side and laid on the floor, the floor didn¡¯t really look reliable either for some reason.


    I sighed and laid my head on the table, this was way more work than what I expected. The table also badly creaked, making me think twice about doing it. In the end, I ended up stiflingly sitting on the chair. The king awkwardly took the big seat next to me, it also creaked. I could see how unsure he was about the room, as he also awkwardly sat without trying to move too much.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t there another room?¡± I asked in annoyance.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think we would be there instead? You got your answer.¡±


    ¡°Talk about humor¡­¡± I sighed. ¡°This seems like a waste of time.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, but unfortunately I cannot skip things like these. So¡­ you will suffer with it.¡± He briefly smiled at me.


    This king was pretty weird, so I didn¡¯t really know what to do. Sometimes he was nice, sometimes he seemed to try to be in a higher standing than others .Well, I should probably do something about that. Or at least try to.


    ¡°Hey king, I want to duel you.¡±


    He laughed. ¡°Sorry, but I know you can¡¯t beat me, even though you are impressive for your age, you are still way too inexperienced.¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± I nonchalantly asked without interest. ¡°I kind of just thought it was possible.¡±


    ¡°What makes you think that?¡± He turned serious all of the sudden.


    ¡°Well, we are in an enclosed room. If it was all lit in fire you would die from the burns or lack of oxygen.¡± I looked at him in the eyes, well¡­ I doubted he knew what oxygen was.


    ¡°Oxy what? Well, I won¡¯t fall for your lies.¡± I saw sweat coming from his side.


    ¡°Well, you know... ¡° I started drawing circles on the creaking table. ¡°Once air runs out you can¡¯t breathe, simple things.¡±


    ¡°Youuu¡­¡± He lifted himself from his chair with tremendous force, snapping the handles in the process. ¡°Just because I like you, it doesn¡¯t mean you get to stand on the same ground!¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡± I was surprised. ¡°Is that what you thought I was doing?¡± I stood up. ¡°I am sorry, but you are the kid here.¡± His face turned bright red, then he suddenly smiled as if nothing happened.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get the ceremony done and then we finish whatever you intended to do.¡± He sat back down. I nodded with a bit of confusion and sat down again as well. I couldn¡¯t really think about what made him suddenly change his mind, but not like I cared. Also, I wasn¡¯t in on the idea of seeing if I could survive in an enclosed room without air. I didn¡¯t really know what oxygen was other than what living beings breathed, as well as fire breathed. So, following that logic, there is no fire without oxygen, or so I¡¯d like to think, well¡­ Something to try for the future I guess. Life is long.


    I laid my head on the table. ¡®I kind of just wish I remembered more¡­¡¯ I hopelessly muttered, there was plenty of things missing from my memory, things like how I knew so much, yet useless things like my interactions with some dragons were there. But they always were bland and hostile, and female dragons had weird obsessions over dragons¡¯ scales. Like sure¡­ My scales were pretty, but there was no need to try to remove them off me¡­ I shivered from remembering.


    The door slammed. ¡°To believe I was asked to come here¡­¡± A grumpy and raspy female voice grumbled.

 (Chpt. 58) Testing the limits (3)

    Alice.


    I looked at the door, there was a grandma standing there, she wasn¡¯t really hunched or anything. However, she was wearing some kind of reading glasses, and her hair was pale white, her skin was very rugged. I must also add that she was wearing an oddly revealing dress. I looked at her hand, it seemed to be holding a sword for whatever reason. The king looked at her with a slight surprise.


    ¡°I thought you weren¡¯t going to come.¡±


    The woman frowned. ¡°Just because I dislike you it doesn¡¯t mean I will skip something that I find interesting myself, so where is this new mage?¡± She scanned the room and locked gazes with me. ¡°Oh, what do we have here?¡± She inspected me in surprise. ¡°Hmm¡­ I don¡¯t know you, but since you are here you must be important.¡± Well¡­ yeah. ¡°Want to be my grandkid?¡± She asked with a bright smile.


    I couldn¡¯t help but tilt my head, this woman just walked in and decided to randomly ask me to be her kid. What?


    ¡°Lin, don¡¯t joke around too much. Just take a seat.¡± The king sighed.


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t joking though¡­¡± After saying that halfheartedly she took a seat. She kept eyeing me with slight interest. I sighed, this really was going to be annoying, wasn¡¯t i?¡ª


    .


    A thunderous sound crashed into the room, the door was sent flying. ¡°Oi, Firil! DUEL ME!¡± A burly man shouted as he enthusiastically ran into the room with a battle axe. The king sighed once again.


    ¡°Firil is not coming, so just take a seat.¡±


    The man frowned and scratched his beard. ¡°What a waste of time¡­ Well, regardless¡­ If I can¡¯t beat Firil my kid will! He was sent to learn magic after all.¡± He said with pride as he took another seat.


    People kept walking into the room, but this time they didn¡¯t make a quarrel or a disaster, they just quietly sat down. Some of them looked rather refined, others were true warriors. I noticed a slight sense of hostility and unfriendliness, mostly directed at the king. Others looked at the king with awe and respect, it was¡­ odd. The grandma kept looking at me as she absentmindedly scratched the floor with her sword, I would say she was the weirdest one out there. The warrior was sleeping on the table.


    The king with crossed arms was restlessly tapping his elbow. He was waiting for someone else, well, not like it was hard to notice. Out of the twenty or so chairs, one spot was missing, which oddly enough was next to the king. I wonder who the person was.


    Someone walked into the door, it was Dan¡­ We locked gazes for a moment, my eyes widened. He coughed. ¡°I am sorry I am late.¡± He then took a seat. Dan¡¯s voice was oddly weird, it felt fake and just... Not Dan''s, but it was still Dan, weird...


    Also... Why was Dan here? Guildmaster? Sure, that works for me. But also a noble? I mean, sure I guess, but wasn¡¯t he supposed to take care of Ari? Well¡­ he will pay, now that I know that Dan is very important and is not taking care of the things I gave him... He won¡¯t get away from me anymore. He seems like a useful person to have around, besides, he didn¡¯t take care of Ari. After grinning to myself I noticed Dan went pale for a bit. I guess he sensed it.


    The king stood up.


    ¡°Well, I assume you all know why we are all here.¡± I heard a few grunts and saw some nodding. ¡°So¡­ The elf is getting replaced, he went too far.¡± I saw some more nodding to his comment.


    ¡°So, where is the replacement? Is it Firil?! FIRIL COME HERE!¡± The axe warrior exclaimed as he smashed the desk, I was quite amazed it hadn¡¯t broken yet. The king sighed.


    ¡°No, it¡¯s not Firil. He really doesn¡¯t have anything to do here anymore. So, stop that!¡± The warrior dropped his shoulders. ¡°Well, regardless. I brought you all a wonderful mage that will serve as the elf¡¯s replacement. She is right here!¡± He pointed at me¡­ They all looked at me with curiosity, although¡­ I don¡¯t remember the king knowing my name, so there is that. What a problem¡­


    I decided to just sheepishly smile. The warrior grunted. ¡°You expect me to believe that thing can beat Firil?!¡± A few nods followed.


    The grandma smiled. ¡°Oho¡­ I am more interested in you now. What do you say, do you want to be my grandkid?¡± I sighed. What was with these people.


    ¡°I see, the king has decided¡­ Well... can I go now?¡± One of the more well-dressed people commented. The room was basically split between well-dressed people and warriors. Then there was Dan and the grandma. The refined people nodded in agreement of leaving.


    ¡°You will have to wait for that.¡± The king looked at me. ¡°Since you all know why you are here, you must also know that we need to approve said mage.¡± People nodded, some were opening their mouths to speak. ¡°Therefore, we will need to see that she is worthy. To the practice range, we go!¡± He stood up, leaving no room for protests. The refined people sighed, the warriors looked at me with slight anticipation, others with tiredness.


    People started walking out of the room, including the king. I was the last one to stand up alongside with Dan. First thing I did was stand in his way.


    ¡°Do you need anything?¡± He sweetly asked with curiosity. I tilted my head.


    ¡°What do you mean by that? I left you to take care of Ari.¡±


    He thought for a second. ¡°I don¡¯t know anyone named Ari though¡­¡± He scratched his cheek before giving me a bright smile. ¡°Oh! I know. You must think I am Dan!¡±


    I nodded in confusion.


    ¡°Well, I mean¡­ I am Dan... But I am not... Let''s say I am Dan for now. I don¡¯t know what type of connections you have with me, but nice to see that Dan has a very pretty girl aiming at him.¡± What?!


    I breathed in and out to stop me from smacking this person in front of me. ¡°So¡­ Who are you then.¡±


    ¡°I am currently Dan, but if you mean who I actually am, I am his sister. You can also call me Mia, I get told I look a lot like Dan. So, for now I am Dan.¡± I scanned ¡°her¡±. She looked exactly like Dan, the only difference is that she was wearing a dress instead of male armor. Huh¡­ Well¡­ I guess I can ask something important now.


    ¡°I see¡­ So, tell me, is Dan a girl?¡±


    She thought for a second. ¡°I don¡¯t think so¡­ Did Dan become a girl or something?! I want to have a younger sister!¡± She childishly fantasized¡­ Sigh. Why was she even here? Besides, what does she mean by younger?! Are you telling this girl is older than Dan and somehow more obnoxious?


    ¡°Ah¡­ Don¡¯t think of me as important, I might be here, but Dan is the noble. Even though I am technically a noble, but Dan is the house representative. But, for now I am the representative.¡±


    ¡°I see¡­¡± She was overly friendly, and stupid...


    ¡°Now that I told you all that. What¡¯s your name?¡±


    ¡°Aizen.¡±


    ¡°Weird name, but let¡¯s be friends!¡± She exclaimed as she hugged me, she was definitely not Dan. Everyone in the caslte was weird...


    ¡°M¡ªDan! Stop messing with my new too?¡ª court mage!¡± Looks like the king was also in the ''pretend this girl is Dan'' thing...


    She unglued herself from me. ¡°I am sorry about that. Well, let¡¯s go.¡± She grabbed me by the hand and took me out of the room and into the hallway. Fenri lazily followed.


    The hallway was deserted. I was dragged up the ramp and into the light, which led to the roof. The architecture was very weird. At least the place looked sparkly clean and refreshing. The old room felt suffocating in a way. The king was gone for whatever reason. Dan¡¯s sister kept dragging me to the roof. The ramp wasn¡¯t very steep, but it was a long walk.


    After some more walking, we were finally out. The first thing I noticed were the crenellations that ran around the entire spiral that was the castle. I wonder if one still needed a license for those? Well, they were just as white as the floor of the inside, the floor of the outside was a light gray. I noticed the nobles from afar. I kept walking alongside Dan¡¯s sister. The closer I got to them, the more I noticed. There was a lot of battle dummies, like the one Dan had pulled yesterday. I guess those were the targets. I also noticed something rather odd. There was a gap in between the spiral, like some kind of interruption; it had smoke coming out of it.


    I arrived after some more walking. I received a few comments from the tired nobles about taking too long. The king gestured me to come to his side, making me stand in front of everyone.


    ¡°Now we will have her perform her strongest spell!¡± I saw a bit of excitement from the warriors, nothing much though. The king moved away and left me standing in front of a dummy. My mind was blank, it was too sudden. I stood there looking at the dummy as I thought about the possible spells I could use.


    I sighed and looked around. I wanted to see if I could use fire here. But honestly¡­ it might¡¯ve been a bad idea. I heard some metal clanking on the background, it had some type of rhythm that felt oddly familiar, but I shouldn''t be distracted about it. It was probably a blacksmith or something.


    ¡°How long are you going to take?¡±


    ¡°Why are you wasting our time?¡±


    ¡°Show me that you can beat Firil!¡±


    The nobles weren¡¯t that friendly either. I sighed as I looked around for ideas, I practically looked at absolutely anything and everything that could sparkle something in my mind. First thing I realized was that there was no wind blowing, and the mana was rich and flowing like a river, I looked at the ground. It wasn¡¯t entirely spotless of dust, in fact¡­ the reason it was gray was because of dust. I got to thinking into important things, about what could I use for the target. I thought about something fun that could happen, or that I saw happen, fun things tend to be dangerous after all.


    I remember this one time in my dragon days ?¡ª I was in a cave that was full of dust particles, it didn¡¯t really have airflow for that matter. Adventurers showed up to do the dragon subjugation, the warrior seemed oddly stiff. The mage was excited and the priest was oddly nervous.


    ¡°Maybe we shouldn¡¯t do this¡­¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s free rare drops!¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡­ Just listen to the mage, it will be easy.¡±


    ¡°I love dust explosions!¡±


    The mage looked at me with bloodlust. I wasn¡¯t really paying attention at the time, however, she then used some fire and the entire cave lit up on fire, my vision turned white and a thunderous sound resounded. What I heard were screams of agony and constant swearing about something going wrong.


    When it cleared up, the adventurers weren¡¯t there. I was bewildered about what happened, and it seemed interesting. So I spent the following months researching about it in my own dragon way, I realized that what they called ''dust explosion'' was literally in the name, it was a rare phenomenon that happened under very specific conditions.  ?¡ª After recalling those fond times I smiled, it was something fun, but it had too many things it needed. I looked at the dusty ground. I felt nostalgic, I kind of wanted that to happen, the problem was¡­ This wasn''t an enclosed space, also there were a few more problems.


    The king leaned in and whispered into my ear. ¡°I know you are nervous, but don¡¯t make me look bad, or you will regret it.¡± How... threatening.


    ¡°Right¡­¡± I sighed. ¡°Hey, I want to try something new, so let me try it and if it goes wrong I will just do it the generic way.¡±


    He thought for a second. ¡°Very well¡­ do what you must.¡± He left like that, he was weird.


    Well¡­ I really wanted a dust explosion, I didn''t really know if this dust, in particular, could be ignited, but it was worth a try. I looked at mana, I wondered if I could make mana influence something physical.


    Alice.


    I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. o/ Remember this is still a learning experience for me so a few chapters might feel off as I try new concepts and things in general.

 (Chpt. 59) Testing the limits (4)

    Alice.


    I started looking at the ever-flowing mana, and moving it by ¡°will-power¡±. It was a truly strange process thinking about it objectively, it felt like controlling another part of the body, but if I had to explain it to someone, I truly would not be able to find a better word for it. But there it was, being slowly moved according to my desires. I never really fiddled with it too much, so I didn¡¯t really know of its possibilities. It was kind of something that existed for me, another aspect of life, nothing worth investigating, I kind of regret it now.


    First I licked my finger to truly see if there was no wind blowing well¡­ It honestly didn¡¯t really matter, but I could feel one side of my finger get cold, so there was wind, a small and almost unperceivable breeze. I proceeded to wrap my finger around in mana, it felt tingly. But ultimately the wind wasn¡¯t stopped. Mana couldn¡¯t really influence the physical state of an object.


    I sighed in defeat. I wanted to have fun and not watch some boring dummy get ignited into flames. Well¡­ I guess I didn¡¯t really have a different option. Hmm¡­ What could I do? Igniting it into fire would be nice, but neutral magic would also be nice. I wonder.


    I looked back at the people behind me, some of them were restlessly tapping their foot on the ground and crossing their arms. The king was looking impatient as well. Others looked with interest waiting on me to do something. I looked back at the dummy and got to thinking.


    ¡°Well¡­ I guess I will do that¡­¡± I muttered as I exhaled, I would normally say the name of the spells out-loud since it allowed me to focus. But it would be better if they didn¡¯t know its name. The old man recognized some of them by name, it''s probably better to not say it at all.


    After a single second, I ran into a huge problem, which also made me facepalm at my stupidity. I didn¡¯t know how magic worked, well, how it actually worked. I needed to say the spell name to do the spell, quite literally. I normally wouldn¡¯t be so stubborn but I felt too stupid at that moment¡­ So¡­ one says the spell name and it happens. There are chants. Chants normally relate to what the spell look or does, magic requires a being¡¯s mana to activate and take its shape.


    So, basically, by saying the name or chanting. My mana does what it''s supposed to do, sort of... Yeah... That kind of sounds set in stone once thinking about it. So mana takes a shape or form and it does that, that¡¯s why aptitudes are a thing, and that¡¯s why I can only use neutral magic for the most part. I am getting somewhere, now I wonder about...


    I looked back at the flowing mana in the air, it kind of looked like a transparent film. At least that¡¯s what it looked like to me. I recalled the spell I wanted to use. Which in this case it was ''fissure'', I recalled how mana looked when using that spell. I tried manipulating the ambient mana.


    First making it into a ball around the target, then removing all of the mana inside said ball. Effectively making that space devoid of mana, or mana less space. At least that¡¯s how I think it went. It looked kind of weird, almost as if there was an invisible orb blocking the path of mana, just going around it instead, kind of like wind. After quickly thinking about it, I tried making it collapse, but nothing happened. The space remained empty of mana even when I was no longer trying to do anything to it. I tilted my head in confusion.


    As I doubted why nothing was happening I felt a tap on my shoulder. Glancing back, it was the king. He was frowning.


    ¡°You better do something soon¡­¡±


    ¡°I just¡­ did¡­¡± I technically did something.


    He smiled. ¡°Well¡­ Do something noticeable then.¡° He was an odd person. He left after saying that and went back to watching. People were really getting impatient.


    I sighed and stopped wondering about the mystery that I had just created. I decided to use the same fire I used on Dan¡¯s dummy. Condensing fire into a little ¡°droplet¡± like shape at the tip of my finger. People soon concentrated on the unfamiliar ember at the tip of my finger, with a smile, I let it go; drifting across the air and into the dummy. Striking the dummy and?¡­ nothing¡­


    I instantly tilted my head.  "That''s not supposed to happen..."


    The king rushed to my at lightning-fast speed and started shaking me. ¡°Are you making a mockery out of me!?¡±


    I was confused. ¡°Well¡­ That... I don''t know, the spell kind of just¡­ dissipated¡­¡±


    The king was fuming, and some people started laughing.


    ¡°So much for a replacement¡­¡±


    ¡°What a waste of time.¡±


    ¡°Kids are just kids, I don¡¯t know what I was expecting.¡±


    Harsh comments coming from almost everyone. The only people that didn¡¯t say anything were the grandma and Dan¡¯s sister. The king let go of me as he furiously shook me. Letting me hit the ground. I would¡¯ve normally been mad, but I was too confused. I looked back at the dummy with curiosity. The mana gap was still there, but it was slightly shaking.


    ¡°What the¡­¡±


    ¡°I was wrong about you.¡± The king coldly said as he turned around. I guess he thought that was meant for him and not the raging unstable void that the dummy was in. It started to shake violently and become more and more unstable.


    BOOOM!


    My vision turned pure white and my ears were deafened by a tremendous blast sound. The flooring beneath me shook, the walls trembled and dust was sent flying everywhere. I felt a constant deafening ring in my ears, I was laying against a wall, or rather... the floor. I felt so disoriented, I tried getting up but to no avail, I would fall back down seeing I had no sense of balance. A few moments went by and my vision finally cleared, everything was full of smoke, the dummy was missing, there was a huge crater in its place. The only thing left were small spots of burning fire and the charred ground.


    ¡°... Interesting¡­¡± I murmured in a bit of a surprise as I struggled to get up, I would¡¯ve never expected that to happen. I can only guess it was something akin to a dust explosion but with mana. However, I didn¡¯t really understand how it happened or why. But it was still interesting nonetheless. I looked back. The only person standing was the grandma, she had buried her sword into the ground for support. She also held Dan¡¯s sister on her other hand, Seeing her in such position, I had to say. She was very strong.


    "Something to research about I guess..." I said as I tried to hide my excitement.


    Everyone else was covered in dust. Some of them were painfully grabbing their ears. Others were simply not moving. I saw a huge pile of dust slowly but firmly stand up. It looked like a big fur mantle. After looking at it stand up, I noticed it was the king. He was slack-jawed as he looked around. He looked at the groaning people, he looked where the dummy was, and then he locked gazes with me.


    He hurriedly stood before me. ¡°What did you do?!¡± He was mad again, for whatever reason.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I guess it was an experiment, that was half a success?¡± I said with slight doubt, I didn¡¯t really know if it could be called an experiment or if it was really successful. But I would say it was a success since it caused destruction. It gains my seal of approval.


    The king grit his teeth, as he was about to shout some more. He was interrupted by loud voices. People were shouting at each other for whatever reason. I didn¡¯t really pay attention, but I think the only reason for their shouting was because they couldn¡¯t hear. The king looked back with some annoyance and turned around. He dug into his coat and pulled out a silver bell that had some blue crystals embedded in it. He started shaking it but no sound came out, he started restlessly tapping his foot on the ground. After a few minutes, a lot of the floating dust cleared. The disaster became even more apparent. Pieces of the ground were missing, among other things. As I inspected the messed up surroundings, I started hearing some hurried and fast footsteps.


    Looking back in the direction of the sound, it was a team of castle servants. They started carrying people that weren¡¯t moving back into the castle, as well as just cleaning the entire disaster in general. Once they arrived the king looked back at me with mixed emotions.


    ¡°The dummy was the target, not them¡­¡± He quietly informed me.


    ¡°Well¡­ The dummy is also gone. So, there is that.¡±


    He sighed as he lazily wiped his forehead. ¡°Alright¡­ Since you can at least hit your targets, I guess you are welcome aboard the council of court mages.¡±


    "Yay..." I paused. ¡°Didn¡¯t you named it something different last time?¡± I mean, I could be wrong, but I swear he used a different name or slightly different at least.


    ¡°Bah!¡± He waved his hand in dismissal. ¡°Just don¡¯t attack people and we will be in good terms.¡± Well¡­ That kind of sounded hypocritical, but I just nodded instead of saying something else.


    As soon as I nodded he sighed in relief, after that, he left my side and started muttering things to himself as he bit his finger. I could see the frustration on his rugged forehead. I guess nothing went like he was planning.


    I saw a pile of rubble start moving and collapse, Fenri came out of it and started shaking himself off all the dust. He gave me a death-glare once he was done, he was expecting something from me.


    ¡°Um¡­ I am sorry?¡± I didn¡¯t really know if it was right to apologize. He just growled at me, which I guess I deserved. He still came to my side for whatever reason, he got close to my hand and tried to bite it off. Well, he did bite it, but it didn¡¯t really hurt. As soon as he realized I wasn¡¯t bothered by it he stopped. I don¡¯t know how much force he was using in the bite. With a slight feeling of defeat, he decided to quietly lay on the ground.


    I kept quietly observing my surroundings to see what was happening, the king was still indulged in his thoughts and frustrations. The servants were clearly confused about what had happened but they were too busy doing their jobs to question the king. It was an all-around bad situation. "I guess, what I did was bad?" I quietly asked myself, I didn''t really know if it was bad or not. As I continued to think I felt a chill run down my spine, a sense of coldness and insecurity overwhelmed me.


    Fenri started shaking, his ears perked up, and he stood up in a hurry, looking at me with wide-open eyes. Something was amiss, I could just tell by his expression; instead of his relaxed dog-like state, his fur was spiked and he seemed very alert, but I could also sense that he was worried rather than startled. He started pulling my sleeve with full-force which made my panic grow.


    ¡°W-What¡¯s wrong?¡± He barked. Something was definitely wrong, I got that, but what could make him like that? Was it¡­ ¡°Kuro?¡± He started hurriedly nodding. I felt my heart compress and my head became pained.


    ¡°I-Is he in danger?¡± Fenri started to hurriedly bark, that was a yes¡­ My heart started to ache and throb. I firmly looked at Fenri. ¡°Take me there¡­¡±  After I said those words he started running back into the castle.


    I started running behind him as fast as I could.


    ¡°Where are you going?¡± The king ran into me.


    I frowned. ¡°I have something really important to attend to.¡±


    ¡°Is that so? We are not done here¡­¡± He coldly dismissed it and stepped further in front of me, essentially blocking my path like an insurmountable pillar. I could tell, he didn¡¯t want me to leave.


    I started boiling, Fenri realized I wasn¡¯t with him and he came back, being fully hostile to the king. I wasn¡¯t going to let a person get in my way. The king in front of me, was my enemy. He needed to die if necessary, I might¡¯ve done a promise, but I also have priorities. ¡°Move¡­¡± With those cold words, the king started sweating and sheepishly moved aside.


    Fenri instantly realized that it was done and continued the lead. I followed through the spiral-castle ramp corridor. Soon enough we were in the entrance and rushing through the garden, I didn''t even know how long we had been running for. There was a door, but it didn¡¯t seem like it was going to move. Fenri tried opening it but nothing happened. I kicked it with full strength. Surprisingly, the hinges gave in and it struck the ground making a thunderous sound.


    I rushed into what appeared to be a forge. I saw the dwarf, who had an agape mouth. I looked around some more, there I saw a pair of boots and a skirt. Fenri and I rushed to her side. It was Kuro and she was heavily panting. Something was extremely wrong. My hands started trembling, I didn¡¯t entirely know what to do. I was¡­ lost...


    ¡°Kuro, Kuro¡­ Kuro!¡± I started calling out to her but she wouldn¡¯t respond. Fenri started howling and restlessly tapping her, we both didn¡¯t know what to do. ¡°I am sorry for being so useless¡­¡± I said full of regret as tears started to build on my eyes.


    ¡°So, that¡¯s what happened¡­¡± An understanding voice came from behind. I looked back at it, it was the king. ¡°I decided to follow you to see what it could be.¡± I started getting mad, I didn¡¯t even want this person near Kuro right now. ¡°Wow. Calm down. I know what she has.¡± He hurriedly added.


    ¡°What is it?¡± I impatiently asked.


    ¡°First let¡¯s make a deal.¡± Deal? Nice joke.


    ¡°Alright, here is your deal. Tell me what she has and I won''t kill you.¡± He frowned but didn¡¯t say anything, I already knew how strong he was, but unfortunately for him. I was stronger. He muttered for a second.


    ¡°What she has, is mana exhaustion. She doesn¡¯t have enough mana.¡± I looked back at her with trouble, I didn¡¯t notice it before, but what he said was true. The problem was, one needed to completely refill their mana to not die. I knew about how much mana she had, it was quite a lot, even for me.


    I dropped my shoulders and collected myself. It was something that I could fix. I closed my eyes and started feeling my internal mana. My heart started beating faster and I started to panic. ¡°Not enough¡­¡±


    The king was turning around and getting ready to leave.


    ¡°Wait!¡± He turned back to me. ¡°What¡¯s the deal for saving her?¡±


    He smiled. ¡°A peer to peer contract.¡± I tilted my head not knowing what it was. ¡°Basically, we make a contract as equals and we agree on the conditions. We both will be bound to said conditions.¡± I swallowed my saliva.


    ¡°Will I be unharmed? More importantly... Will she be unharmed?¡±


    ¡°Yes and yes. Don¡¯t worry about that, so, what do you say?¡±


    ¡°Fine¡­¡± I swallowed my pride. ¡°Please save her.¡±


    He nodded with a smile and picked her up doing a princess carry. I felt so powerless, I struggled to not let my emotions get to me, my lips quivered. I regretted everything, but then¡­ Something flashed in my mind, a memory. I started hurriedly wiping my face and tried my best to calm myself.


    ¡°Can I come with you?¡±


    He tilted his head. ¡°Sure, why though?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want her to get appraised or anything removed from her.¡±


    He smiled. ¡°I can do that.¡±


    I lifted my brow. ¡°Can you? What if you don¡¯t comply? Do I get to kill you before the contract?¡±


    He laughed. ¡°Even if I don¡¯t comply. You won¡¯t know about it.¡±


    ¡°I will know, so, can I go?¡± I asked with a slight hopeful tone.


    He sighed. ¡°Do whatever.¡±


    I accompanied the king, so did Fenri. He took her to a kind of nursery, which also had the people from the explosion. I wasn''t very welcome there, as the few people that were awake looked at me with hostility, the king talked to the doctor and explained my weird demands. Well, it wasn¡¯t a doctor. It was an alchemist.


    Kuro was laid on a bed and I sat next to her as I waited. The alchemist brought a few mana potions and started making her swallow it, if it was normal liquid it could¡¯ve been dangerous. But potions permeated in the insides of people rather than being actual liquids, so the choking danger wasn¡¯t there.


    One potion nothing, two, three, four¡­ Ten¡­ The alchemist stopped. ¡°I will need to check her status¡­ This is weird¡­¡± Before I could react he touched her with a stone, fortunately, she still had the gauntlet on. ¡°Inspection blocked¡­¡± He muttered in shock, he looked back at me. ¡°I am sorry, but if that happens. Then there is nothing I can do¡­¡± I felt panic overwhelm me, he probably thought she died, which made convincing him harder.


    I knew why potions weren¡¯t working, but there had to be some type of dumb reason I could think of¡­ ¡°Um¡­ She has a special constitution¡­ Her mana is below average and for some reason her body barely absorbs potions. Please keep doing it¡­¡± I came up with a nonsensical explanation that would hopefully convince him.


    ¡°But?¡ª¡±


    ¡°Keep doing it.¡± The king coldly said and gave me a quick smile. I guess that was his way of getting me on his side.


    The alchemist dryly swallowed and kept bringing potions. It took around sixty potions until she stopped panting. The alchemist looked at the king with a troubled face. ¡°The potions will be paid for¡­ right?¡± The king wordlessly nodded.


    The king looked at me with a smile. ¡°Take your friend to a private room. Also, take this.¡± He pulled a robe out of nowhere and placed it over my head. ¡°Please use the robe starting from now. The contract can wait.¡±


    I sheepishly nodded. ¡°Thank you¡­ Also, I am sorry... for threatening... as well as the potions..." He laughed and did a wave of dismissal as I sheepishly apologized to him, it wasn''t my style but he had done what I couldn''t. I felt slightly bad for threatening the king, also I probably had gone overboard on hostility. I had to at least listen to what the king said. I wore the robe. It was black and had golden accents and patterns near the edges of the fabric, it had patterns on the hood, sleeves, and on the hemline that I could step on if I was not careful. It was pretty and very comfortable.


    ¡°Looks good on you.¡± The king commented and left. I tilted my head, he had become a completely different person. After I completely collected myself in relief I got ready to move Kuro to another room. I breathed in and out, and at last, I lifted Kuro with a bit of a struggle, she was hard to carry since her body was the same size as mine. I ended up carrying her on my back, making her hug my neck and grabbing her thighs in between my arms. I also had to carry her since the staff seemed busy dealing with my victims.


    I exited the room with the help of Fenri. The dwarf had been waiting outside and guided us to a private room near the top of the castle. He was somewhat impressed because I declined his help with carrying Kuro, he also said something about me not being able to carry her for that long. I just ignored him and did it.  I left her on a bed and waited for her to wake up.


    I waited¡­ and waited¡­ Eventually, all the built-up fatigue got to me and I fell asleep.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 60) Shaping a new reality (1)

    Alice.


    A lot of you voiced your concerns on the previous chapter, all I can say is. Don''t worry about it, the story is not heading into a permanent capital arc. I am not a big fan of lingering on a location for too long. Hopefully, everyone enjoys this chapter as much as I did.


    ¡°Woaaa!¡± The fishes were shining! Well, it was the sun striking their scales, but it was still beautiful watching them glisten in a myriad of colors. I could see the smooth rocks at the bottom of the river and watch them swim by. The cool and wet grass felt nice to the touch; the forest''s was wood covered by moss and the greenery felt so peaceful. I looked up at the sun, it was shining brightly, striking a perfect balance of heat and cold.


    I looked at the sky once again, the sun looked weird, it started morphing and spinning?! The light blue sky started becoming duller until it became gray and rough-textured. The sun turned into a shiny rock. What? I looked below, I was no longer standing up. I could not even feel my body¡­ What was happening?!


    I started darting my head around the unfamiliar place I was at. Old and worn down white brick walls, as well as a pristine and flawless marble floor around. I couldn¡¯t feel my body, but I noticed I was on a bed covered by heavy and warm sheets. Fluffy and soft, my neck felt cozy as I moved it around. It was bliss. I finally started feeling my spine and upper-body in general. Making me somewhat rise up from an unfamiliar place.


    As soon as I got somewhat up I saw someone asleep sitting on a chair, resting their head atop of my bed with silver and silky hair. Said person was wearing robes so I had no idea who it was. The figure woke up and slowly rubbed her teary eyes, it was¡­ ¡°Aizen?¡±


    She hurriedly looked at me with teary eyes and rose her arm up high. Then she slapped me, making a clapping noise resonate throughout the room. My eyes trembled as I couldn¡¯t believe what had just happened. I held my burning cheek with a slightly open mouth in shock.


    ¡°IDIOT!¡± She yelled at me then furiously left the room¡­ I couldn¡¯t help but hold my cheek tighter. What was the reason for that, it was completely unnecessary. I don¡¯t know the current situation but still...


    ¡°What¡¯s with her?¡± I muttered.


    ¡°She had been crying for the past few hours¡­¡± I heard a response from across the room, making me glance in said direction. It was the dwarf, his voice was no longer as friendly nor as carefree as usual. He sighed. ¡°Sheesh, girly, don¡¯t go around and shocking us like that. I was worried for you¡­¡± He made a bitter smile. ¡°I don¡¯t want to see something like that again. Also, she might have gotten mad simply because all you did was get confused instead of saying something reassuring to her, but those are just my thoughts. I certainly would''ve gotten mad." Eh.


    I couldn¡¯t help but tilt my head, one moment I was playing with my metal and the other I was facing at the sky, hopelessly looking as the world spun around and blurred into nothingness¡­ ¡°What happened?¡± I decided to ask.


    He got to thinking. ¡°Well, you see¡­ I found you lying on the ground heavily panting,¡± eh¡­ ¡°You wouldn¡¯t respond nor react to anything. I did not think much of it, since I am used to seeing newbies faint.¡± He laughed for a second. ¡°Well, I wouldn¡¯t have thought much of it, but after a minute, your partner and the wolf busted into the forge by breaking the door with a single hit, I don''t even understand how they knocked it down.¡± Eh?! ¡°Anyway, they hurriedly rushed to your side and checked but since you weren¡¯t responding, they rushed you out of the forge and to the king.¡± What?!


    ¡°And now we are here.¡± A voice chimed in. I hurriedly looked in front of me, there it was, a tall man with a sharp gaze and light wrinkles on his mouth and eyes. He was standing by the door as it silently closed behind his towering bath-like robe figure. ¡°You had me worried for a second¡­¡± He added. Who was this person?


    ¡°You ran out of mana, somehow.¡± Wait, what? He sighed. ¡°I am honestly impressed, it¡¯s the first time I hear that happening, anyway girly, since I see you confused I will briefly explain.¡± He locked gazes with me, making me gulp my dry saliva. ¡°You almost died¡­¡±


    My eyes went wide, how could something like this possible. I can think of the mithril since it took my mana, but I probably have way more mana than the average person, then¡­ How? No wonder she called me an idiot, not even apologizing to her¡­ Sigh¡­ I still have a long way to go, but I am here now. Wait¡­ Who is this person?


    ¡°Umm¡­ Are you the doctor? Thanks for saving me¡­¡± I sheepishly muttered.


    The dwarf froze and the man in front of me started laughing. ¡°I wish I was the doctor¡­ I was just doing what your friend asked me to. Your friend is very important to me after all.¡± I stiffened from the void and blank words.


    ¡°And you are?¡± I asked with a slight frown.


    ¡°Oh sorry, I am Gazel, or, the current king of Tortul.¡± Tortul? What was that? Hmm¡­ Oh right¡­ It was the name of the capital, you mean this person is¡­ ¡°Eh? Don¡¯t make that face, I am not going to execute you, I don¡¯t care about disrespect or respect, but if you think you can defy me¡­¡± His veins bulged. ¡°Just try it.¡±


    ¡°... No thanks¡­¡± I silently replied.


    He laughed. ¡°I thought so. Anyway, your friend is very unique and strong, I am sure she will be a great asset for the kingdom.¡± There he goes again.


    ¡°Asset?¡±


    ¡°Well, I have to keep the peace in the kingdom, and regardless of how powerful I am, I cannot do it all. Besides, the strong reign over the weak; offer their protection and shelter, as well as keeping things in line and peaceful. Or at least I would like to think it is like that, seeing the country united.¡± What¡¯s with this man, also, I wouldn¡¯t call it peaceful at all¡­


    ¡°Is keeping things in line and peaceful; killing people and robbing little girls?¡± I decided to ask.


    ¡°Hmm¡­  Well, it really isn¡¯t, but it is better than to have unnecessary bloodshed,¡± Eh¡­ Wasn¡¯t what happened today unnecessary bloodshed?! ¡°A few lives sacrificed is better than a few thousand, after all, I take the strong under my wing and nurture them, I offer protection to the weak. I shall keep the peace for as long as I can, the previous king was good for nothing, after all, allowing greedy nobles to stay in their place even if they didn¡¯t do anything. The strong should be rulers. Don¡¯t you agree girly?¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­¡±


    ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t expect someone as weak as you to understand, keep in mind. I have no interest in you, but your friend is important to me, don¡¯t think I saved you out of joy. Also, try to not use your mana too much, it probably is below the average value if this happened. See you.¡± He left after that cold speech. I couldn¡¯t bring myself to close my agape mouth.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s the king for ya girly,¡± the dwarf added.


    ¡°Sigh¡­ What a stupid ideology¡­¡± I muttered. ¡°Being strong does not make one smart, being strong does not make you the best king, being strong doesn¡¯t mean you will improve the quality of life for people¡­ Just what is wrong with this person?!¡± I messed up my hair in annoyance.


    ¡°Relax, the king isn¡¯t someone you can make sense out of.¡±


    ¡°Then, why him?¡± Wouldn¡¯t a king need to be you know¡­ Dependable?


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Well, I am sure everyone has their own reasons, for me¡­ Well¡­¡± He bitterly smiled and scratched the back of his head. ¡°He pays me a lot of money.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s all?!¡± Is all he cares about money?


    ¡°Well, he also keeps me alive, offers me protection, allows me to do whatever I want. What else could I ask? Besides, it is not like he goes on a rampage whenever people do ¡°peace-breaking¡± things, I think you are overthinking it. Bloodshed does happen, but it''s rare.¡±


    I started thinking, was this the right thing. I am not really planning on defying the king, but it really makes me wonder who he is, based on the little things he said. I am pretty sure he is not really a king but more of a warrior, or just a powerful person. What a problem, no wonder people are so crazed about status. I wonder what would happen if people found out Aizen¡¯s status? Hmm¡­ Well, whatever. I should probably think about what got me in this situation instead; even though I truly don¡¯t understand what happened.


    ¡°Well, I am sure you want to be alone.¡± The dwarf left after saying that, I didn¡¯t really understand him, but well¡­ I couldn¡¯t read minds.


    I pondered for a few minutes but all I could think of was the mithril. But then again, I doubt it would consume so much mana to leave me exhausted just after three times. It sounds unrealistic, it doesn¡¯t really make sense, the numbers don¡¯t add up. I am pretty sure summoning Fifi wouldn¡¯t consume over one thousand points, then why would the mithril consume over twenty times that? All in a single-use... I wonder what could¡¯ve caused it. Sigh. Well, at least I got good news.


    I decided that I should go back to the forge. Removing the heavy and warm sheets from over my body I noticed something¡­ There was a big white ball on top of me! It was breathing¡­ Could it be? As I glanced it with speculation it woke up and looked at me. It was Fenri, he gave me a death-glare. His eyes were so fixated in looking inside my soul that it made me uncomfortable; he was mad.


    ¡°Grrr¡­¡± Fenri growled¡­ I couldn¡¯t help but gulp my saliva. He slowly got up with his hind legs first and slowly walked to stand right in front of my face. Showing me his fangs and with icy-cold unfriendliness. He growled one more time before he got really close to me and let his legs collapse atop of me.


    ¡°Fenri?!¡± He was way too heavy. He didn¡¯t answer me and just started licking me instead! Every time I tried to get him off he would re-stick to me like glue¡­ I sighed in defeat, he was probably just as worried as Aizen if not more. With those considerations in mind, I decided to just stay in my place until he felt like moving¡­


    It was a bad idea¡­ He had been licking me for the past thirty minutes with no signs of stopping. A few more minutes passed and he finally stopped and got up; staring me once again into the eyes, this time his eyes were sparkling with happiness. I petted him and rubbed his neck, as well as hugged him. I kind of felt guilty for doing such a disaster unintentionally¡­


    After easing my guilt by cuddling with Fenri I finally got up and left the room. The whole place was unfamiliar, with the dull-colored ceilings and the oversaturation of white colors. There were a lot of paintings and the floor had a long red carpet running. The first thing I noticed was that¡­ I had no idea where I was¡­ It was just a long hallway with evenly spaced windows throughout.


    I couldn¡¯t help but wordlessly stand on the hallway and look both sides, it was pretty much the same from either side so I really didn¡¯t know where to go¡­ I dropped my shoulders in defeat before I felt some tugging to my side, Fenri was biting and pulling on my clothes. I looked at him with hope and he started walking in a direction. It was left, but could it really be left? Both sides looked the same. Worrying about random things I followed Fenri.


    The place was big, it felt like a maze or rather, a linear maze, but Fenri still guided me throughout and after a lot of walking I recognized where we were. We were in the entrance hall near the garden, or well¡­ The entrance hall that was connected to the garden. Either way, I could finally know where I was. Fenri did not stop walking and guided me into the garden.


    Aizen was quietly sitting under the shade of a tree; sun piercing through the foliage as she silently looked at the ground. She noticed I was there and simply looked up to see me. She sighed and loosened her shoulders.


    ¡°You know¡­ I was worried¡­¡± She looked at me. ¡°Just don¡¯t do whatever you did again, you really gave me a lot of trouble. Especially with convincing the alchemist or whatever you were just a normal girl."


    ¡°Eh?¡±


    ¡°You see, this person was really convinced that the reason the potions did not work was that you were just dead.¡± Eh... She sighed once again. ¡°Well¡­ I don¡¯t think I need to keep explaining everything that happened.¡±


    I couldn¡¯t help but swallow my saliva. ¡°Did they find anything out.¡±


    ¡°Idiot¡­ The thing you should be saying is ¡®I am sorry¡­¡¯ instead.¡±


    ¡°I am sorry¡­¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s better.¡± She gave me a smile and stood up.


    ¡°Still, I wonder what could make something like that happen.¡± Aizen pondered as she looked at the sky.


    ¡°I wonder the same¡­ But I have a surprise for you!¡±


    Aizen tilted her head. ¡°Surprise?¡±


    ¡°Just come with me.¡± I grabbed Aizen and brought her to the forge. The dwarf wasn¡¯t there for some reason. The door was also on the ground as the dwarf said.


    There it was, a white piece of ceramic or rather dead mithril on the ground next to the scrap. It seemed to have ¡°dried-out¡± for some reason. Aizen was weirded out by said ceramic and tilted her head.


    ¡°So, what is it that you want to show me?¡±


    I smiled. ¡°Just grab that thing and you will see.¡±


    Aizen wordlessly knelt down and held the mithril on her arms as she stood up. She held it for a few seconds, then her eyes widened.


    ¡°You idiot!¡± She slammed the mithril on the ground, it had become dark as I remembered. However, Aizen seemed extremely mad. ¡°No wonder why you almost died. That thing literally sucks your mana forcibly!¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ Can¡¯t you move it since it has your mana now?¡± I asked as I scratched my cheek.


    ¡°That¡¯s not the point!¡± She yelled at me. ¡°What good can it do being able to make it into a weapon if it kills you before you get to use it? I will admit, it is plenty interesting. But you know what isn¡¯t? You dying because of an stupid metal experiment!¡± Aizen was mad.


    ¡°B-But¡­¡±


    ¡°No buts¡­ Just don¡¯t make me worry like that again¡­¡± Aizen wiped the corner of her eye. ¡°It was a bad joke¡­¡±


    ¡°Y-yes¡­¡± I wanted to use it to make it into a gauntlet for her though¡­ Aizen sighed.


    ¡°Yes, you can use it for making the thing I asked you about. I am sure I can do something so that the metal doesn¡¯t kill me¡­¡± She said in defeat. ¡°But! I will be here when you make it, so that you don¡¯t kill yourself, got it?¡± I sheepishly nodded as I wondered how she knew what I wanted to do.


    Aizen finally allowed her stiff shoulders to relax as she breathed out in relief. After calming down she looked at me fixedly before rushing to me and tackling me into the ground.


    ¡°Aizen?!¡± What¡¯s with her all of the sudden.


    ¡°I was really worried¡­¡± She muttered as she rubbed herself against me, staining my clothes with her face¡­ I couldn¡¯t help but bitterly smile at my naiveness.


    ¡°I am sorry¡­¡± I quietly apologized once again. Aizen just hugged me tighter.

 (Chpt. 61) Shaping a new reality (2)

    Alice.


    A few minutes went by, it took a while but Aizen had finally unglued herself from me. She was finally calm, although she looked at me with warm eyes and a slight hint of worry, I would¡¯ve normally been annoyed If I had been looked at in such a pitiful way, but I completely understood where she was coming from.


    Some more time passed, Aizen sighed and finally went back to her usual self. ¡°So, what now?¡±


    I tilted my head. ¡°Isn¡¯t it obvious?¡±


    ¡°You mean?¡ª¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s smithing time,¡± I said with a smile.


    ¡°Oh no¡­¡± She said with slight regret.


    ¡°Well, now that you are here. I think it¡¯s a good time to do the smithing since you were concerned about me.¡± She nodded with a gulp.


    Aizen stayed quiet for a few seconds as I inspected the cursed mithril that I had created. I mean, it looked like it was about to shatter. It had lost the dark tint it had, it was back to the usual white stone-like surface. Truly weird indeed. I only watched it since I was skeptical to touch it, at least my mana was full so I shouldn¡¯t need to worry too much about it.


    ¡°So, how will you go about it?¡± She asked as she examined the brick herself.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know honestly, I was planning on giving it mana and just molding it to the correct shape, but now I don¡¯t know. I am sure there are limits to how much it could be molded, but I don¡¯t think I will be able to find those out.¡± I briefly explained her my thoughts, she tilted her head.


    ¡°You can control your mana?¡±


    I scratched my head in doubt. ¡°Sort of?¡± I paused. ¡°I mean, I could move it while it had my mana in it, so I guess?¡±


    She nodded. ¡°I see¡­ Well, based on what I saw on the material, it drains a ridiculous amount of mana when it first turns dark, then it keeps on steadily drawing¡­ If you let it go for too long it gets completely drained.¡± She looked at me in the eyes. ¡°You must keep it in its dark state and keep it in constant contact with you, it will continuously drain your mana but it will be at a more normal rate.¡± I nodded. ¡°Basically, it drains mana to retain its form but once it loses its form it uses way too much to go back, which makes it dangerous.¡± That made sense.


    ¡°So basically, it¡¯s safe to work with as long as I keep it in the same state?¡±


    She smiled. ¡°Yup, so don¡¯t make me worried.¡± She thought for a second. ¡°Well, now that you know that. I will go to those chairs.¡± She pointed at the chairs at the back of the forge, I nodded.


    I saw her smile at me once more and clumsily walk on a chair and collapse on it. My eyes at that moment widened, prompting me to rush to her side in a panic, Fenri did the same. Her breathing was quick and she was sweating, upon realizing I was next to her she slowly opened her eyes.


    ¡°I thought you were going to get into forging,¡± she said with a bitter smile.


    ¡°But¡­¡± Was she even okay?


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, I just need a break, today has been a long day.¡±


    Fenri clumb up on her and laid on her legs, she smiled at him. ¡°Kuro, just do your thing. I assure you I will be fine.¡±


    ¡°... Fine¡­¡± I dejectedly agreed, I didn¡¯t even know what she had or how to treat her. But if the explosion from earlier was her doing, considering she also touched the mithril brick then it could only mean she is low on mana, which was ultimately my fault.


    I turned around, my lips quivered and I started shaking. I felt oddly guilty, I just felt like everything could¡¯ve been prevented. ¡®If I had just been more careful I wouldn¡¯t have worried her so much, if I was more careful she wouldn¡¯t be in such a state¡­ If only?¡ª No, it¡¯s not the time for that.¡¯ I tightly gripped my fist, I couldn¡¯t disappoint her anymore. At least I should try my hardest for this one.


    With a newfound resolution, I looked back at the ugly mithril block that was on the ground. I calmly breathed in and out repeatedly, I was preparing myself for the jelly-like feeling it gave me when first grabbing it. It was very uncomfortable but it was something I had to go through. After exhaling I firmly looked at the slab and touched it without hesitation using the palm of my hand.


    It quickly became dark and my arm started feeling tingly and soon enough I couldn¡¯t feel my arm anymore, even though I didn¡¯t want to keep touching the slab. I did as Aizen instructed and didn¡¯t remove my hand from it. After I recovered the sensation of my hand it wasn¡¯t bad, I could feel a slightly itchy sensation on the palm of my hand but it was nowhere near as dramatic as touching it for the first time. I guess this was what Aizen meant by constant drain, but it was bearable.


    I closed my eyes and kept my position for a few seconds to get used to the constant sense of itchiness I felt on the palm of my hand, once that was done. I opened my eyes and grabbed the block with my other hand, carrying it to the anvil with both hands. I placed it on the face and looked at it. I closed my eyes to concentrate and to try to move it how I wanted it to move, it was weird and it felt like willpower or brain-power.


    I thought about gently squishing it, and sure enough. It started to slowly compress and expand its surface area, it took quite a bit, but it eventually became akin to a metal sheet, well it was a metal sheet. I just couldn¡¯t think of it as actual metal, too malleable and too weird, dangerous as well. Mercury is also dangerous, but that was a whole different substance.


    I firmly kept my hold on the sheet. As I held it, I felt the cold and metallic surface warp to my desires. It was an interactive and weird process. The feeling was akin to something like a solid object slowly drifting across the palm of my hand, which made it feel slightly tingly.


    It took a few seconds, but after opening my eyes it was all worth it, it finally had the shape of a perfect rhombus, or diamond shape. It was perfect, such a beautiful shape. All four sides are the same length, and the opposite sides parallel. The diagonals cross each other¡¯s midpoints perpendicularly and they even bisect the angles! Such a beautiful figure! Of course, someone would¡¯ve said: ¡°Oh really?¡± But, I couldn¡¯t care about what they thought.


    I looked at the beautiful geometric figure in front fo me. ¡®I could try to carve it into scale-shaped breakable points and then snap them off with pure force. Essentially making the metal thinner in some points to allow snapping.¡¯ I thought. ¡®Or maybe I could just try cutting it in the state that it is currently in, will I even be able to make the breakable-tablet thing? I don¡¯t even know how to call it¡­ Also, the metal  is already paper-thin¡­¡¯ I pondered for a few minutes and couldn¡¯t really arrive at an answer. I sighed in defeat and dropped my shoulders.


    ¡°Well at least I have to try it¡­¡± I hopelessly muttered as I looked at Fenri. He sensed my gaze almost instantly and tilted his head, I gestured him with my free hand to come. He was hesitant to leave Aizen, but she just gave him a little push and he came my way. He arrived next to me with some confusion.


    ¡°Alright, listen carefully. I want you to touch the demonic metal as I try something.¡± Fenri hesitantly nodded. With a powerful kick, he stood on his hind legs and laid his forelegs on the metal sheet. It kind of looked funny, but I couldn¡¯t laugh. I stopped touching the metal, Fenri started shaking and looked at me with trouble.


    I could somehow tell what he wanted, I touched the metal again and Fenri went back to the ground. The metal instantly made my arm start tingling, looks like it could only take mana from one person only, the experiment failed before I could even start it.


    Looks like I will need to try to carve it with my mind or something. I firmly held the metal and imagined the breakable points thing. Except nothing was happening, I couldn¡¯t help but tilt my head. I started imagining something akin to creating a path by brushing or carving with a tool rather than just instantly imagining the array. I began to see a line run across the surface, dancing and twisting into scales.


    After the line gracefully danced across the whole canvas, or metal rather. I was left with the carvings I had imagined, it was just perfect. It was basically a huge scale, or rhombus, or diamond¡­ Inside a lot of rhombuses; diamonds; scales or whatever I wanted to call them. What was left was filing and slightly bending them, oh¡­ and piercing them.


    I kept holding the plate as I thought about the best way to break the metal tablet into pieces, it wasn¡¯t as simple as snapping a stripe off and let it turn to stone on the ground¡­ Stone¡­ Stone¡­ Wait a second¡­ Wouldn¡¯t that just be fine? Even easier to smash... I mean, the metal might bend, but if I stop touching it and let it become stone, I could smash the things cleanly and even round the edges. I could even pierce the holes. Bending them is eh¡­ I will think about that one later.


    ¡°I want to test something first though¡­¡± I muttered my thoughts out loud as I looked at the metal with sparkling eyes. I pulled my hammer out of my inventory, and still in contact with the sheet, I slid just a single section of the tablet to the edge of the anvil. With the side peeking out of the anvil surface I rose my hammer up high and slammed it with full strength.


    A booming ear-numbing sound resounded in the entire place. I felt a bone-splattering pain run through my entire hand before it became entirely numb. My arm pulsated with waves of pain as it throbbed, even though I got teary-eyed from all the pain, I did manage to see the results on the plate. Somehow or in some way, I still managed to keep hold of the plate, so it didn¡¯t turn to stone.


    ¡°What the¡­¡± It was the first thing that came out of my mouth as I looked at the plate, it had barely bent¡­ Is this some new kind of unbendable material? There has to be a way. I rested my other hand in defeat, putting my body weight on the hanging edge of the sheet. At that moment, it effortlessly bent. I became confused once again.


    ¡°How does this even work¡­¡± I said to myself as I tried bending it once again, without putting too much strength, and to my surprise, it bent back to the original shape with ease, or at least close to flat. I tried bending it once again, but this time with my maximum effort or strength, it didn¡¯t give up. I felt like my hand was more likely to break than it bending.


    I couldn¡¯t help but break into a smile, this might have actually been the best material I have ever seen. At least for protection, blunt hits won¡¯t do anything, you could even make a full armor with no movement spots and it would be usable. This material; simply put, was¡­ Better than anything I could think or imagine, it was the greatest of all time. It made me excited, it made me wonder of all the possible materials out there, and more importantly. What were the limits of this illogical material?


    After I calmed down, I noticed my vision was somewhat blurry. I checked my status once again, my mana was somewhat low. ¡®So these are the effects of low mana¡­ I wonder how Aizen felt all those times¡­¡¯ I thought with curiosity, I had around twenty-percent of my mana left, I couldn¡¯t imagine how having less than that felt. I did faint when I almost ran out without even realizing it¡­ Hmm¡­

 (Chpt. 62) Shaping a new reality (3)

    Alice.


    (I also recommend reading last chapter in case of being lost... I had to do the same...)


    As I was thinking about the effects of low mana I noticed something on the status screen in front of me. The number fluctuated up and down.


    [MP: 6918/34590(+ 50%)]


    6918, then it would change to 6920, then back down. It would repeat itself, over and over again. Fluctuating for about two to three mana points. It was weird, I never really noticed something like that. I pondered for a second as I got derailed from my main objective. It did not take me long to realize that I had forgotten about the metal, I had to chop it using my sheer strength.


    I stopped holding it, I noticed my mana stopped fluctuating, I guess it was what Aizen meant by constant drain. I dismissed my status since it was confusing me, I normally closed it out of instinct or habit. I observed the mithril, it gradually began to become pale, it took quite a bit, but I could definitely see a change.


    I waited a few minutes as it gradually lost its color until it eventually became pale white. However, there was something confusing.


    ¡°There are no cracks¡­¡± The material had become unblemished, almost as if it had restored itself. My eyes widened in surprise, the material could auto-heal itself! For lack of a better word. I started trembling in excitement, with a gulp I took out my usual tongs and grabbed my hammer once again.


    I had to do this carefully. I grabbed the diamond-shaped stone tablet with my tongs. I lined it up with the anvil and rose my hammer up high, then I froze. What was I doing this? I was just calling for disaster, if I wanted to snap them, I could just use some kind of vise. I just needed to have something that was heavy; hard to move, and solid enough to press the object in between, and then it dawned on me.


    ¡°The anvil¡­¡± There were two anvils inside the room, how couldn¡¯t I think of that? Was I dumb? Well¡­ Probably¡­ But still! Fenri had been watching me for the entire time as I did weird experiments, he didn¡¯t leave my side for some reason, his eyes were sparkling. Could it be?


    ¡°Want to help?¡±


    ¡°Woof!¡± So that was it.


    Alright! ¡°Help me move the other anvil.¡±


    Fenri just barked again and left my side, before I could even do anything he began brute-force pushing the anvil. I clenched my teeth as I was about to hear some awful rock grinding from the floor, but to my surprise, it was still there but not nearly as bad as I thought it would, now that I thought about it. The floor was incredibly flat.


    Since I saw the anvil wasn¡¯t getting stuck, I decided to not do anything and let Fenri get the anvil next to the original anvil. Now I had two anvils¡­ Ahh¡­ What a dream¡­ Having two anvils, hehe... Wait¡­ What am I even thinking about!?! After letting Fenri push it incredibly close to their flat sides, and horns pointing away from each other. I tried placing the rock in between without moving them. Surprisingly, it slid through without a problem, however, I noticed it grinded itself quite badly, for some reason the rock didn¡¯t get scratched, I thought it was fragile, but I guess it wasn¡¯t that fragile.


    ¡°Regardless¡­ I should do something about it.¡± With those thoughts I pulled some whatever cloth from my inventory, it was a skirt for some reason. I couldn¡¯t tell what set or whatever it was, honestly¡­ I couldn¡¯t tell which thing was which in my clothes, which just made them more unusable. I liked to wear matching sets, but I couldn¡¯t match things if I didn¡¯t  know what they were. Unfortunate.


    After mourning for my dead clothes, I covered most of the tablet with it and left a single stripe uncovered, which was the thing that was going to get snapped. I had Fenri push the two anvils together to squish the thing in place, it was quite the improvisation but it seemed to hold it in place. I brutely held my hammer like a baseball bat and swung it without that much force. I couldn¡¯t bear to see the thing fly into a wall in case it was weak.


    It made a sound akin to hitting stone iron together and it cleanly broke off, it didn¡¯t fly off into the distance but it almost fell to the ground. Which probably would¡¯ve shattered it, or at least I would like to think that would happen. I was treating the thing as if it was glass anyway. I examined the cut and it came off clean. Seeing this was the correct method I did the same thing for the rest of the diamond.


    Eventually, I was left with about ten stripes of scales. That had about ten scales each, I just eyeballed everything, didn¡¯t even bother to count. It was "close enough" as some engineers would put it. So I had about one-hundred scales, more or less. I grabbed a single stripe and tried snapping a single scale with my finger instead of using the anvil, to my surprise. It also worked.


    I kept snapping it with a pair of tongs and tweezers, I couldn¡¯t really use my hands since it would be suicidal, it made a nice rocky or earth-like sound, I didn¡¯t know how to describe it, I guess it was akin to a rock hitting a wall. It was a nice and pleasant experience, after snapping an entire stripe I noticed I needed somewhere to put all the scales, right now they were sitting on the face of the anvil, but I didn¡¯t really know how long I could keep doing that for, eventually they would pile up and fall to the ground.


    Before I realized Fenri was tapping the side of my feet for something, I looked at him with curiosity and instantly tilted my head. He had a metal bucket! I patted him due to him being so sharp and probably more intelligent than me, but I won¡¯t argue with that, animals are smarter than most people anyway, at least Aizen is. Well, does she even count anymore? Dragon Aizen was smarter than most people, there!


    I kept dumping the scales inside the bucket, snap after snap, every time I dropped one inside it would make a slight metallic clank. The scales kept piling up on the metallic bucket, I couldn¡¯t even see the shiny bottom anymore. I had to make holes in them now. Which made me slightly concerned, I needed water, which I could find with ease.


    However, I had absolutely no idea on how to go about making the holes by puncture or whatever other method. At that moment I felt a tap on my shoulder, I turned around with slight panic, it could be anyone.


    ¡°Need help?¡± It was Aizen. I dropped my shoulders in relief. ¡°What¡¯s with you all the sudden?¡±


    ¡°I am glad you are okay!¡± I glued myself onto her, I was genuinely concerned for her even though I was so focused on making the thing, I was making it just for her after all.


    ¡°Seriously, what¡¯s with you all of the sudden¡­ Hey! Stop rubbing your cheek against me! I-It¡¯s not like it was that bad¡­ I am not that weak¡­ or anything¡­¡± She turned sheepish all of the sudden, I stopped for a second and looked at her, she had a smile. ¡°Thanks for worrying.¡±


    I felt my chest become warm, she looked at me. ¡°So, did you need help?¡±


    ¡°A-Ah¡­ yes¡­¡± I had forgotten about it. ¡°Could you please help me by pouring water on the scales?¡± She suddenly became excited and hurriedly nodded. Then I realized, I had no idea where to find water.


    ¡°Hey Fenri, where can I get a bucket?¡± Aizen asked, Fenri pointed in the direction of a pile of sand, it seemed oddly familiar¡­ Wait a second¡­ That was my sand! The iron! I had forgotten! Well¡­ honestly, it didn¡¯t matter much, but it was still a bit embarrassing that I forgot.


    Aizen followed Fenri to the back and in less than a minute she came with a wooden bucket and water.


    ¡°Wait¡­ Where is the water?¡± I asked in confusion. Aizen tilted her head.


    ¡°What do you mean? There is literally a well next to the sand¡­¡± There was?! I held my head in disappointment. ¡°Well, can¡¯t blame you for now knowing, since its probably your first time in this place.¡± Yeah¡­ Haha¡­ ¡°By the way, how did you even get into the castle?¡±


    She suddenly decided to ask.


    ¡°Ah, it was because of the coin you won of the dwarf.¡± She nodded to my simple explanation.


    ¡°So, how do I pour water the water?¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­ Just pour a slow and thin stream on the scale as I pierce it.¡± She nodded.


    "Well, I don''t know how that works, but sure." She shrugged.


    ¡°Are you ready?¡± She nodded again.


    I grabbed a single scale with my tweezers and placed it on the pritchel hole of the anvil, or the utility hole. I nodded to Aizen, she started to pour a slow and thin stream of water on the thing, which honestly was an incredibly bad method of doing this, but improvisation as my fort! I think¡­ I pulled out a thin-pointed chisel, which was basically just a pointy stick, or it could also just be a pritchel, it also probably could¡¯ve been used for self-defense earlier...


    I aimed and brutely smashed it in the straightest line possible towards the scale. An ear-piercing metal ring resounded throughout the forge.


    ¡°W-What are you doing!?¡± Aizen exclaimed in annoyance. I had missed the scale.


    ¡°W-well¡­ It¡¯s my first time doing this¡­¡± I sheepishly explained.


    ¡°Sigh¡­ I¡¯ll do it, you do the water.¡± What?


    ¡°Can you even do it?¡±


    She smirked. ¡°Well, even if I can¡¯t, it can only be just as bad as yours.¡±


    "... Fine..."


    I gave her the chisel-pointy-stick in defeat and took the bucket. She grabbed the scale with the tweezers once again and gave me the signal, I started slowly pouring the water, I could at least do that well. Aizen narrowed her eyes and with killer concentration looked at the scale, her hand blurred and I heard a small clink sound.


    ¡°Done.¡±


    ¡°W-What?!¡± I looked at the scale, it was indeed pierced.


    ¡°See? Impressive right?¡± I tilted my head with slight confusion. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± She asked seeing my lack of reaction.


    ¡°I mean, it¡¯s impressive, but you pierced the dead-center!¡± That wasn¡¯t the plan, not at all¡­


    ¡°T-Then what was I supposed to piece?!¡±


    I sighed. ¡°You need to piece the top of the diamond.¡± I roughly showed her where I wanted it to be pierced using the now useless scale. She nodded with resolute eyes and went back to work.


    We did it again, and this time I saw her hand. With deft and surgical precision it traveled through the air and pierced the top part of the scale, leaving a nice place for a key-ring to go, or in this case, a perfect place for the scale. She looked at it in satisfaction, I also did. With that out of the way, the piercing process went extremely quick, the water wasn¡¯t really an issue, it even made me wonder if we needed water, to be honest. Aizen was so precise and so strong, it could¡¯ve probably been pierced without it. Well, not like water made piercing easier, it just made it harder to shatter.


    ¡°Whew, that was tiring¡­¡± I muttered as I stopped holding the bucket above my head to regulate the stream, it was surprisingly taxing on the hands.


    ¡°It was fun.¡± Aizen absentmindedly commented. "By the way, why the water?"


    "Eh? It''s to avoid shattering."


    "Em, I don''t think that''s how it works..." she said with slight regret. "Water doesn''t really do anything for it..." She thought for a second. "Unless we were cutting glass I don''t think we would need water, and you don''t even need water for glass either..." Eh? ¡°Anyway, will you need more help?¡± She asked with slight curiosity, I nodded with a bit of doubt. I was confused.


    ¡°Well, you don¡¯t need to help, but it would be preferable. We will be ever so slightly bending the scales.¡± She tilted her head and hurried me to explain why I needed help with this. ¡°Well, they need to become black again to be bendable and th?¡ª¡±


    ¡°I will do it.¡± She interrupted me before I could even finish.


    ¡°Alright¡­ Well, anyway, you can bend them with your hands barely using any force, try to make them just ever-so-slightly bent.¡± After saying that, I clumsily did the curvature I wanted with my index finger trying to show her. She gave me an awkward nod once she understood.


    ¡°What will you do?¡± She asked with confusion.


    ¡°I will make iron wire.¡± I firmly stated, she nodded and we both headed to do our things.

 (Chpt. 63) Shaping a new reality (4)

    I arrived at the pile of sand that had my iron in it, it was colored in a dark grey with the orange sunlight striking one side, the sun was setting but I didn¡¯t really get bothered with it. I dug my tongs into the sand, removing it and it finally clicked with something odd and gritty texture. I took it out with a bit of confusion, the metal rod or rather ''thing''¡­ Was like a stick, it was a weird amalgam of gritty dark material and a mix of iron, it took me a few seconds of touching it to realize it was the melted sand, or whatever it was at this point.


    ¡°So, it turned out like that huh?¡± I questioned as I grinded it with a chisel, it was well¡­ Grindy and hard, it made an oddly uncomfortable metallic raspy noise every time I removed the rock-like glass fragments of it, or rather, smashed them off. It took quite a while but I finally had a somewhat deformed iron rod, the shape didn¡¯t really matter, what mattered was if it was soft.


    I moved to the pair of anvils that were close to each other, Aizen had gone off to sit on the chairs as she messed with the bucket every so often. She was still tired so she wasn¡¯t really rushing it, I felt kind of bad for asking her help but I didn¡¯t think I could take the bucket from her anymore. After a sigh of defeat, I placed the iron rod on the face of the anvil and hammered it once without much force. Sure enough, it bulged. I hammered it some more and made it a lot thinner.


    ¡°Now where is the drawing plate? Hmm... I wonder?¡ª Oh¡­¡± It was right next to my foot, I guess I never moved it from its spot. I lifted it up with slight difficulty, it was much heavier than what I had expected. I went for the largest hole and threaded a bit of the iron, it got stuck just barely past the entrance. It was to be expected. I decided it was going to take a while so I moved myself to the grass that was away from the forge and sat on the cold and fresh ground.


    ¡°Alright¡­ Let¡¯s do this¡­¡± I muttered as I was getting ready for the insurmountable task in front of me. I pulled my pair of tweezers and pinched the tip of the metal thread, placing the drawing board in front of my feet; I started pulling. It slowly but surely started to advance, the drawing board remained in place thanks to my feet. It wasn¡¯t the most elegant solution but it was good enough.


    I kept pulling it, sometimes it would get a bit of stuck and I would have to regrip it and pull it harder, it felt like I was brute-forcing it but I had never done something of such a nature. I kept pulling it, my back was starting to get tired, my arms and tummy started to feel a burning sensation, I kept pulling and then once it had advanced I would move my tweezers closer to the base of the drawing board, repeating the same thing over and over again.


    ¡°Finally¡­¡± I only ran it through the top hole, but I was already extremely tired¡­ With a gulp and a bit of intimidation, I threaded through the ever-so-slightly smaller hole. I started pulling as I grit my teeth. It was indeed and insurmountable task in front of me.


    * * *


    ¡°Ah¡­ Ahahaha!¡± I started laughing as I struggled to breathe, panting on the ground; laying my back on the cold and oddly refreshing glass surface. The sky was on a tint of deep blue with orange. I couldn¡¯t move a single finger, my back was hurting and pulsating as I felt it compressed, my arms were beating and burning and my abdomen was dying quite literally, my head was throbbing and my heart was racing.


    After a few minutes of catching my breath, I finally managed to sit up on the ground. ¡°I can¡¯t believe it was that hard¡­ at last¡­ I am done!¡± I exclaimed with happiness and short of breath, I was also heavily sweating. It was the first time I had been pushed like that.


    I felt oddly happy¡­ ¡°Why?¡± I quietly asked myself as I grabbed my racing heart, even though I had just been through a hell of an exercise I still felt happy. I didn¡¯t know why I kept my hand in my chest, it was rapidly beating. My eyes widened for a moment, I had just realized something. It was the first time I had experienced something like this¡­


    I laid on my back with a smile plastered on my face, I looked at the azure and orange sky, it was truly beautiful. Everything was beautiful, I saw my vision be slightly blocked by something, directing sunlight into my eye and making me block it with my hand.


    ¡°How long are you going to stay like that?¡±


    ¡°Hmm?¡± Was I hearing something?


    ¡°Kuro, I don¡¯t know how long you want to keep me waiting¡­¡±


    I finally managed to see, there was a silhouette, I squinched my eyes trying to see better. It was Aizen, she didn¡¯t seem that happy about what I was doing. I rolled into my front side and got up. She smiled and rapidly extended her hand, there it was. A bucket full of ever so slightly bent and pierced scales. She was done.


    ¡°There you go,¡± she curtly said before placing them on the ground and leaving to sit on the chairs. She fell asleep¡­


    ¡°I guess she was really tired¡­ Well, looks like it¡¯s my turn¡­¡± I muttered with a bit of helplessness, at that moment Fenri rubbed himself against me, I had forgotten he was there, but at least he reminded me he could still help. I petted him and got up with the clumsily rolled iron wire I had.


    I made my way to an anvil and placed the bucket on top of it, just to not forget about it. I examined the perimeter looking for something oddly specific, I remembered seeing them before but for some reason, I couldn¡¯t seem to find them. I looked down and one was on the ground, a metal stick or spear or whatever it was, I guess it was an iron rod, but whatever. The important thing was ?¡ª it was circular.


    I grabbed the rod and placed it in between my thighs, then I grabbed the tip of the iron wire and started coiling it with my fingers on top of the iron wire. After two or three questionable loops it was secure, once I did that I started spinning the rod on its axis as I coiled the wire. The wire would get stuck every now and then, but coiling it wasn''t that hard, it was actually surprisingly easy to get a nice and uniform coiled surface, well¡­ excluding the top part of the rod, which looked as if someone had made a poor quality knot, even though it wasn¡¯t supposed to be a knot at all¡­ Well, I guess it could be considered a type of knot?


    I tilted my head as my thoughts got sidetracked. I shook my head. ¡®Now it¡¯s not the time, I must continue coiling it.¡¯ With those thoughts in mind I kept spinning it, it wasn¡¯t nearly as hard as drawing the wire threw the board, this one was a lot less brute-forcing and just more relaxed in general.


    After a few more minutes it was finally coiled on the entirety of the rod. I inspected the rod to make sure everything was as clean and flawless as possible, once that was done I started to remove the coiled wire from the rod by slowly sliding it off the top. It was slow but ti was cleanly coming off, it wasn¡¯t warping or getting deformed by the pulling, mostly because I was being careful and slow with it. It took another few minutes of removing it but I finally had a perfect coil of iron.


    It kind of looked like a long spring. I inspected it and got ready for the next step, at that moment I froze. ¡°How am I going to cut it into rings¡­¡± I didn¡¯t have the knife the smith made with me, I didn¡¯t have any type of weapon or that matter, I could have used a chisel and a hammer, using it as a stake, but that was only asking for disaster.


    I sighed, ¡®looks like it wasn¡¯t going to be possible to achieve the armor?¡ª¡¯ my thoughts were interrupted by the creaking of wood, I looked back, it was the dwarf. He scratched the back of his head as he gave the fallen door an apologetic look.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ that needs to be replaced¡­¡± He awkwardly said that. ¡°On the other hand, why are you here working so late? Especially after all that happened.¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­ I am just making something special for my friend¡­¡± I explained with a bit of embarrassment, the dwarf raised his brow with discernment.


    ¡°Special eh?¡± He smiled. ¡°I can you both like each other a lot, I didn¡¯t think it would go that route though¡­¡± What is he saying? ¡°Anyway, is there anything you need help with?¡±


    I froze from his weird dialogue but quickly gained track of my thoughts once again, I lifted the iron coil. ¡°Umm¡­ I wanted to cut this into rings, but I didn¡¯t bring your knife with me¡­¡± I said with a bit of shyness, he had gifted me a knife and I had forgotten it, how could I not be hesitant to tell him that?


    The dwarf thought for a second. ¡°I see¡­ Well, I am sure you didn¡¯t bring my knife, which doesn¡¯t really matter to me.¡± Huh? ¡°You see missy, your knife is amazing!¡± Eh¡­ He pulled it out and started rubbing it against his cheek, it was inside a custom made scabbard of sorts. ¡°I had never used such a knife before! To believe it was made from simple iron!¡± He said with joy, I gave him a slightly crooked smile.


    He commented on a few other things and turned back to me. ¡°Yeah, I can help you cut it.¡± He approached me and extended his hand. I handed him the coil without thinking too much about it, he inspected it carefully. ¡°I have to say, you never cease to impress me, don¡¯t tell me you are the master craftsman or something?¡± He said as he poked my shoulder¡­


    ¡°Hahaha¡­. That would be impossible¡­¡±


    ¡°I know right! I still find it mesmerizing though.¡± He admitted with happiness. ¡°Well, moving into your rings. I will cut them for you, is that okay?¡±


    I nodded. He gave me a smile and breathed in and out, he unsheathed the knife I had made him and firmly placed it against the top of the coil. With more deep breaths his eyes shot open, I saw his muscles bulge and the knife started cutting the coil, small metal rings started falling, making subtle clinking sounds. I looked at the ground with confusion, there was another bucket and Fenri was wagging his tail next to it. I didn¡¯t have to think about what happened.


    ¡°There you go,¡± he said as he handed me the bucket, after I accepted it he opened his mouth once again. ¡°I have to say, this dog of yours is very impressive, I might become a tamer just for one,¡± He nonchalantly informed me, I couldn¡¯t help but awkwardly nod at his weird comment.


    He put away the knife and looked at me. ¡°Well, I am done here.¡± What? I tilted my head. ¡°I just came here to check if I had forgotten something, but it looks like I didn¡¯t. I hope your proposal goes well. Hope you find the right ring among those, although they seem a bit small.¡± He turned away and waved off.


    ¡°What?¡± I asked to myself in confusion, did he say proposal? Must¡¯ve been my imagination.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 64) Shaping a new reality (5)

    Alice.


    Another day, another chapter. One of these days there is going to be a double release since I am too ashamed of posting a single of that chapter duo, so both of them the same day. Needless to say, I am not looking forward to it.


    I''ll be asleep when chapter goes live, I think I''ll wake up to a dumpster fire, (possibly not) it feels like throwing a dice. Hope everyone enjoys the chapter.


    I gave some thought to whatever the dwarf said, I found it weird. ¡®I mean, who was I proposing to? Do I even love someone in an affectionate way; to be with them way? Weird¡­¡¯ I shook my head and looked back at the rings that were in the bucket, now I had two buckets. One full of scales and one full of rings.


    I took both of the buckets to the grass and sat down, it was getting dark but the warmth and candescent light of the furnace made a somewhat cozy atmosphere. The grass was refreshing and still cold to the touch. I could see somewhat clearly, so I wasn¡¯t really bothered by the time.


    I pulled out a pair of tweezers from my inventory, I had a pair of every single tool; backups and whatnot. I gripped a scale with one and threaded an iron ring, I grabbed the now threaded scale which looked like a keyring and inserted another scale on the same ring, then closed it off. I added another ring to the first scale and added yet another scale on the opposite side. Once that was done I added one more ring to each of the lateral scales and threaded a single scale in between both rings.


    I had a small rhombus shape that was made out of four scales and four rings, it was slightly tedious but I had to keep doing it. It was also a bit confusing, it was slightly hard to grasp the pattern since the scales moved every so often so it didn¡¯t really look like a uniform shape, but rather just a mess of a keychain.


    I kept adding rings and scales broadening the scale mail, eventually, it was fairly wide and it could cover my arm, since I couldn''t keep expanding it into a rhombus, I stopped adding scales to the sides and just kept ¡°weaving¡± the pattern through the center, what I had was basically an arrow that was oddly stylized.


    Slowly but surely I kept threading rings and scales, it was a slow and tedious process, even though it made a nice jingling sound akin to a keychain whenever I added new things. I paused for a second and couldn¡¯t help but be amazed at what I was doing. I was almost done with the scale part of things, I still needed to mount it and whatnot, although, what amazed me was just how intricate the pattern looked. Rings threaded in groups of four following an arrow shape made naturally by the scales, most scales had three rings threaded through them. It was oddly satisfying and fulfilling to see what it was ending up like.


    It took quite a bit of time but after some more threading and using a lot of tweezers trying my hardest to not touch the actual scales I was done. It was surprisingly uniform and it had no blemishes, I had half a gauntlet at this point. I looked at both buckets with satisfaction, almost no scales and rings left, just a few spare ones. I added one more ring at the tip of the arrow and a few across each other on the sides.


    Breathing in and out I pulled out some random piece of armor that I saw of good quality in my inventory, it seemed to be a coat of sorts. Black shiny and smooth leather with some silver linings and accents. I had no way of cutting the leather to fit the scales on it, I guess it was due to lack of preparation.


    I sighed in defeat as I left the coat in the ground, at that moment I heard a high-pitched dangling next to me. Aizen was inspecting the scale mail with a discerning eye her eyes sparkled for a second before she coughed.


    ¡°This is it¡­ right?¡± She asked trying to hide her enthusiasm. I couldn¡¯t help but avert my gaze and sheepishly scratch my arm.


    ¡°Umm¡­ actually I couldn¡¯t finish it because I don¡¯t have a knife¡­¡± I said with slight embarrassment, Aizen froze for a second and got to thinking. She inspected her nails with a bit of hope, they were slightly pointy and a bit long but they weren¡¯t vampiresc or claws for that matter. However, her gaze lingered on them.


    ¡°I might be able to do something¡­¡± She said with a bit of doubt. I tilted my head hearing her.


    ¡°How so?¡±


    ¡°Well, I have a feeling I will be able to do something¡­¡± She absentmindedly said as she dug her hand into the scale bucket and grabbed a single scale, she slightly flinched as it darkened, but her gaze was as sharp as ever. She held the scale right in front of her and concentrated her utmost attention, I closely watched wondering how the scale would change but I saw nothing happen.


    She breathed out in tiredness. ¡°Alright, that should be it¡­¡± I tilted my head yet again. ¡°Just hand the coat .¡± I wordlessly nodded and gave her the coat. She lightly touched the durable leather with the tip of the scale and effortlessly drifted it across the shiny and smooth surface, to my surprise the scale was cutting through the coat as if it were butter, even though it was supposed to be a Legendary item¡­


    Aizen deftly cut the sleeve off and started gradually removing bits of unnecessary leather. She looked like an experienced leatherworker for a second, she seemed to have experience with it, but now that I thought about it, the rags she had been wearing when I first met her were probably made by her, or at least I would like to think that she did that.


    Aizen avoided cutting too much and we ended up with a leather sleeve-gauntlet-thing, it was basically one piece leather gauntlet. Aizen did add some stylization by cutting open the bottom and leaving just a few strips that connected the leather together, it was an open design if you will.


    She wordlessly handed me the gauntlet with a smile and excitement. I overlapped the scale layer on top and opened the rings I had added at the end, surprisingly Aizen had lined up the rings perfectly with the stripes so I could just thread them. I threaded the front and moved to the sides, slowly but surely it was a black and white gauntlet full of unblemished and pearl-like white scales.


    It was pretty, as soon as I finished threading the last ring something odd happened. I saw a rune-like pattern flash on the surface of the leather, kind of like an imprint, then it rapidly vanished. I couldn¡¯t help but blink repeatedly, this wasn¡¯t in the plan. I looked back at the gauntlet closely, the first thing I noticed was that the scales were shining like normal mithril instead of the white rock-like texture they had.


    ¡°Is something wrong?¡± Aizen asked with curiosity.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­¡± I decided to truthfully answer. ¡°Well¡­ here you go.¡± I tried giving Aizen the gauntlet but she rejected it by repeatedly shaking her hand.


    ¡°I can¡¯t take it right now, it will probably leave me out of mana¡­¡± She said with a bit of sadness, I gulped and slowly nodded.


    ¡°You could turn it into an item and then tell me what happens,¡± Aizen said with a bit of a smirk, I nodded and poured mana into the gauntlet, touching the leather only the whole time.


    [Error: Cannot re-evaluate item.]


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± What was that?


    [Title unlocked: Rekindler of the lost.]


    Rediscovered a long lost metal and bringing it back to its former glory, perhaps the world should know about you?


    [Title unlocked: Long lost but not forgotten.]


    You have brought the world something that had been thought as lost, but it''s never truly lost until it''s forgotten.


    I looked at the gauntlet with utter confusion, I don¡¯t even know what was going on anymore, too many words going by my head, so much to think about that doesn¡¯t even make sense. What are titles anyways¡­ They used to be flex potential, but I don¡¯t think they have any effects¡­ They shouldn¡¯t at least.


    I noticed something flashing by the gauntlet, or rather a bit of magic energy. I decided to inspect the gauntlet seeing I couldn¡¯t really enchant it.


    [Dragon¡¯s claw ?¡ª Relic ?¡ª A special gift for a special someone. The scales can be morphed into almost anything by drawing the user¡¯s mana, they return to their original form after use.]


    ¡°... What?!¡± Did the item just auto-enchant itself without me touching it? Like, did the system recognize it as an item before I could even touch it? What just happened¡­ Is the system turning sentient and about to kill me?! No wait¡­ that should¡¯ve happened quite a while ago recalling the random titles I have gotten¡­ What was it? Something about loving a glacier?


    ¡°What happened?¡± Aizen looked at me with concern.


    I shook my head. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, here.¡± I threw the thing at Aizen.


    ¡°Wha?¡ª What are you doing?¡± She let it fall on the ground as she skillfully dodged it and picked it up only touching the leather.


    ¡°Just inspect it¡­¡± I said without much care, her eyes widened.


    ¡°Did you do this?¡± I shook my head, she went into thinking and looked at the gauntlet fixedly a few times, with a bit of hesitation she put the gauntlet on before removing it in an instant, she moved her hand around with confusion. With a bit of doubt, she put the gauntlet back on, her face turned from doubt to confusion.


    ¡°Is this the same hazardous-people-killing material from earlier?¡±


    I tilted my head. ¡°Well, it¡¯s supposed to be, what do you mean by ¡®people-killing¡¯ though?¡± I asked, Aizen instantly sighed.


    ¡°Think about it, if someone with an average amount of mana touched your cursed metal plate they would instantly have all their mana drained and die!¡± She said in annoyance, I kind of froze because of my stupidity. ¡°Anyway, it¡¯s better this way. I guess it only draws mana if I want it to morph, huh?¡± I nodded towards Aizen¡¯s self-questioning.


    Aizen silently adjusted her gauntlet with a smile, this time she wore it under her robe, she would look at it occasionally with a bit of melancholy for some reason. Was that the reason she wanted a scale gauntlet? As I was thinking she slowly approached me and hugged me.


    ¡°Thanks for going so far for me¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh, what do you mean?¡± I was really confused.


    ¡°Well you know, you fainting because of the metal, among other things¡­¡± Oh that¡­ Yeah¡­ It wasn¡¯t exactly for you but it''s better if I don¡¯t say anything¡­ I wordlessly hugged her back seeing she was still somewhat happy.


    After a few seconds she unglued herself from me and looked at me with a smile and then back at her gauntlet, she whispered something to herself and opened her mouth.


    ¡°Well, now w?¡ª¡±


    ¡°I-I can¡¯t believe you left me!¡± I looked back at the door or rather, the entrance, it was Ari. She had a look of betrayal and redness on her face, teary eyes and a bit of sweating.


    ¡°I told you that they are not leaving you¡­¡± A tired voice came from behind, it was Dan.


    ¡°Dan is bad with kids,¡± a cheerful voice added. ¡°How silly of you brother.¡± Brother? Just what is happening?!


    Alice.


    Sorry if the chapter feels a bit iffy, have Aizen art in compensation, was feeling artistic today. (Warning: It''s a bit lewd, sorry...)


    Let me know what you think of the art in the comments. Feedback is appreciated, o/

 (Chpt. 65) Seeking attention (1)

    Alice.


    I am quite embarrassed about this chapter, I had no idea what I was doing. It''s not quite the filler, but it certainly was unnecessary. Another chapter coming soon.tm, and that''d mark the end of Ari''s perspective.


    ?Ari?


    Aizen exited the door and left me with the Grandmage Lynn and Dan.


    Dan was a nice person, I kind of felt bad that he always got pushed around by Aizen, but she didn¡¯t seem to have bad intentions, so I guess it was fine. The problem was.


    ¡°Dan¡­ Why did you stop me?!¡± Lynn furiously exclaimed as he threw a hissy fit on the table. He was extremely drunk, I think they were playing a drinking game before I got here.


    ¡°Old man, shut it, you are going to die if you go, besides she isn''t a bad person!¡± Dan exclaimed as he apprehended Lynn on the table, Lynn¡¯s face showed readiness to leap out of the window if necessary. It was slightly scary. I was quickly becoming hesitant.


    ¡°Umm¡­¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡± Dan made a stiff smile with a gentle voice as he struggled to keep Lynn down, meanwhile, Lynn didn¡¯t even hear me and was too busy gritting his teeth lamenting his lack of strength.


    Dan wrestled with him on the table until the old man ran out of energy.


    ¡°Where is Yami?¡± I asked with slight worry.


    Dan seemed confused. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    I dropped my shoulders in disappointment, Dan seemed to be uncomfortable as he took a step back and proceeded to scratch his cheek. ¡°I can look for her once I take care of the old man,¡± he sheepishly said.


    I cheerfully and instantly nodded, which seemed to make Dan at ease, seeing his expression relaxed ever so slightly before returning to the power struggle.


    I wonder where was Cecil?


    My gaze drifted across the room as I wondered about Cecil. I saw various things, from bones to what seemed like some type of artifacts, items perhaps? It was kind of laughable how I thought items were amazing and then I was saved by Yami. Weird how quickly things change.


    ¡°I am the Master Craftsman.¡± Those words suddenly popped in my mind, at first I did not take her seriously, I still kind of can¡¯t, but I have a feeling of uneasiness deep down inside me, I cannot tell what it is, what am I even worried about. Also, wasn¡¯t the Master Craftsman male? Well, no use worrying about it. I shrugged.


    Suddenly the doors busted open. ¡°Hey brother, stop messing with Grandpa Lynn, it¡¯s almost time to go.¡± A cheerful and childish voice echoed in the office. I instantly glued my eyes to the door.


    ¡°Dan?¡± I couldn¡¯t help but mutter. We made eye contact and he smiled. I looked behind me, there was also Dan there? Two Dans? No, wait¡­ The new Dan was wearing girlish clothes and did seem to have a better haircut, smoother and a lot fancier, although hair length was almost the same.


    ¡°Mia, why are you here?¡± Dan was unfazed, Lynn was now soundlessly sleeping on the table.


    ¡°Oh come on, don¡¯t be so cold~¡± ¡®Mia¡¯ cheerfully said. Dan looked at Mia with doubt, Mia ended up pouting. ¡°You know, you were summoned by the king to assist with the new court mage selection¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh, you can go for me, no?¡± Dan asked.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be silly¡­ I am not a boy, there is no way I would pass as you.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by, bit being a boy?¡± I decided to ask not following the conversation any further. Dan was unamused and looked at me.


    ¡°This is Mia, she is my sister and... identical twin,¡± Dan emotionlessly said with a brief pause.


    ¡°Hi, I am Mia,¡± She cheerfully waved at me. ¡°And you are?¡±


    ¡°... Ari¡­¡± So¡­ Dan looks exactly like his sister¡­ What¡­ That¡¯s¡­ That¡­ That sucks. No wonder why he was so depressed when we first met him, don¡¯t worry Dan, I like how you look.


    ¡°Ari¡­¡± Dan addressed me.


    ¡°Yes?¡± I wonder what I did now.


    ¡°Why are you looking at me like a pitiful hurt dog?¡± Eh...


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Dan, you are manly in your own way!¡± I decided to go through with the compliment.


    ¡°That was unnecessary!¡± He exclaimed with a bit of embarrassment.


    ¡°Yeah, you are so cool, brother!¡± Dan looked at Mia without amusement and grabbed her hand.


    ¡°Eh? What are yo?¡ª No! Stoop!¡± Dan started forcefully dragging her out of the room. Dan left the room with his sister, closing the door as they exited. I heard some bickering in the hallway. Then it became silent.


    Dan nonchalantly entered the room and his sister entered as she quietly sobbed.


    ¡°Brother you are mean¡­¡± She said as she wiped her tears.


    Dan at this point was sitting on the desk, making sure Lynn was sleeping. ¡°It¡¯s an agreement isn¡¯t it?¡± Dan asked without moving his gaze.


    ¡°... Y-Yes¡­ B-but, you better comply!¡± She exclaimed as she left the room, closing the doors behind her with a booming sound. Dan sighed and looked at me, he scratched his cheek and avoided eye contact.


    ¡°I am sorry about that¡­¡±


    ¡°... It¡¯s fine¡­¡± I hesitantly reassured him. Dan¡¯s expression softened again and finally looked at me.


    ¡°Thanks for understanding, well¡­ Could you stay here to check on him?¡± He looked at Lynn. ¡°I am going to go look for Yami.¡± I nodded without hesitation, Dan left and I was alone with Lynn.


    Minutes went by, an hour went by, some more time went by. I was making random doodles in the air with my finger. It was getting boring, or rather, my patience had run out. I was bored since the start. I started inspecting the office and saw a small stick that could fit on the palm of my hand. It had a black tip, I touched it and it marked me with black ink, it was a marker. I just didn¡¯t realize it was one because of the material it was made out of, it was made out of wood and something else. I thought they were made with animal hair.


    Seeing I could make my doodles reality I wanted to try the marker. However, I had no surface to draw on, I looked near the desk and there was no paper, even on the desk, the only papers there seemed rather important. And then I saw it, Lynn¡­


    ¡°It will be okay¡­ I think¡­¡± With a gulp, I let my desires take over me.


    * * *


    ¡°Hehehe~¡± As I stupidly and mischievously laughed the door opened, Dan was back with slight confusion. He tilted his head as he saw me putting the marker back in its place.


    ¡°Just¡­ What did you do?¡± Dan asked with slight worry as he approached Lynn. His face turned to horror. ¡°Y-you can¡¯t do that!¡± He looked at the marker¡­ ¡°Sigh¡­ I would normally be mad, but I don¡¯t care enough about the old man,¡± he nonchalantly informed me.


    ¡°Why would you be mad?¡± I decided to ask.


    ¡°Long story short ?¡ª almost everything in the old man¡¯s office uses mana, therefore the marker you used also uses it.¡±


    ¡°And?¡± I wasn¡¯t clearly following.


    ¡°It lasts a lot longer and it¡¯s incredibly hard to remove.¡± Oh¡­ Well¡­. Now I kind of feel bad¡­ ¡°Don¡¯t worry though, maybe he will learn to not get drunk on the job.¡± I nodded to Dan with hesitation, when I realized.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Where is Yami?¡±


    ¡°Oh, right. Yeah¡­ I couldn¡¯t find her, and something else happened.¡± He scratched his cheek, I tilted my head wondering what could he mean. ¡°I ran into the other Guildmaster¡­¡±


    ¡°So?¡± I urged him to continue.


    ¡°So¡­ basically, Yami is about to get into a lot of fun things. Ari, she now has another guild card.¡± Eh¡­ ¡°Apparently she really wanted to be called Dark Shadow or something.¡± Ehhh?! ¡°That¡¯s what the dwarf told me though¡­¡± He added seeing my confusion.


    ¡°And¡­ Who told the dwarf?¡± I asked with slight hesitation fearing the worst possible answer.


    ¡°Aizen.¡± Oh¡­ ¡°Yeah I thought the same, so it¡¯s going to be fun.¡± Dan smiled. ¡°Anyway, looks like we won¡¯t be able to meet her for quite a while, is there something you want to do?¡± Dan suddenly put me on the spot. I had no idea what I wanted to do, or rather, a place I wanted to go to. Unfortunately, I didn¡¯t know many things or places to go to.


    ¡°Em¡­ Is there somewhere you would like to show me?¡± I decided to ask Dan. His eyes widened and he started thinking, I guess he did not expect me to ask him. He nodded to himself before looking at me with a smile.


    ¡°Well, would you be interested in learning about the Master Craftsman?¡± Eh?


    ¡°Why all of the sudden?¡±


    ¡°Ah, well¡­ I don¡¯t know much about anything else regarding stories, I am more battle oriented.¡± Is... that so? ¡°Hey! Don¡¯t look at me like that! I am actually very strong!¡±


    ¡°Why do you know so much about the Master Craftsman specifically?¡± I decided to ask, he didn¡¯t seem to be the kind of person interested in that kind of things.


    ¡°Ah¡­ Well¡­¡± He scratched his cheek. ¡°His disciple talked a lot and I was forced to hear¡­¡± Ah¡­ ¡°Well, apparently he had a dragon. Isn¡¯t that amazing?¡± Dan said with a smile.


    I tilted my head. ¡°Weren¡¯t dragons extinct?¡± I mean, everyone knew, well Aizen is a dragon, but she is an exception. And Fifi wasn''t a full-on dragon.


    ¡°I mean¡­ that¡¯s what the church wants you to believe, there are quite a few dragons around the world. I got to meet one.¡± Dan said with pride. ¡°Although it was asleep the entire time¡­¡± So you only saw one as he slept¡­


    I would¡¯ve normally been surprised, but many things have changed since then¡­ It¡¯s quite amazing how much something can change in such a short period of time. I kind of wonder what type of person was the disciple. Hmm¡­ well, no use. I don¡¯t really care that much about the Master Craftsman, Yami is more than enough, although I wonder why Yami never talks about him? Well, she did proclaim herself as him, but I don¡¯t recall her ever talking about the subject other than that time.


    ¡°Well anyway, I can see that you don¡¯t seem that interested in the Craftsman.¡± Huh? Did I ever talk to him? Well, he was probably looking at my ever-changing expression from my thinking. ¡°How about we go sightseeing?¡±


    ¡°To where?¡± I asked the first thing that came to mind.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know. We could go around the capital and finally the castle, I still need to meet with my sister.¡± Oh¡­ now that I remember.


    ¡°Why was she sobbing?¡±


    Dan sheepishly averted his gaze. ¡°Well¡­ I told her I wouldn¡¯t hug her if she didn¡¯t go, and she started crying¡­¡± Well¡­ I guess it was better if I didn¡¯t ask. ¡°Anyway, let us go.¡±


    He grabbed my hand and we exited the school building, the sun was up in the sky, I think it was mid-day. Dan first showed me the noble district and the houses and who owned them, I didn¡¯t really care so it went into one ear and came out the other. He did show me his house, it was just as big as Firil¡¯s. He also had a lot of monster parts as trophies, I guess he really liked battles.


    Later we went to the central plaza around the guilds. Dan and I stood there, we could see the castle from afar, it was beautiful. I don¡¯t see why Yami and Aizen squinted from the pearly whites, I personally thought it was very stylistic. Then I squinted.


    ¡°Is that what they meant?¡± I said as I saw an extremely bright light flash.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, seems normal to me.¡± Dan nonchalantly said. I felt the ground slightly shake, but as I looked around me no one seemed to notice or care for that matter. Then I saw a smoke trail coming from the side of the castle, I guess something bad happened. Aizen should be okay, I am sure she will come to pick me up.


    Dan then showed me the third street, I think it was a more commoner oriented area, this one was filled with inns and some utility shops. I could see individual houses here and there, apparently, the slums were in between the commercial area and common housing area. It was surprisingly complex.


    Dan showed me around some more and finally the castle.


    ¡°Stop!¡±


    ¡°Oh come on¡­ It¡¯s me, Dan!¡± He exclaimed at the guard in annoyance.


    ¡°Sorry Mia, you won¡¯t be getting in.¡± The guard firmly said.


    ¡°I am not Mia!¡± Dan was annoyed. "Would Mia dress like this?!¡° He grabbed his ''manly'' clothes.


    ¡°Well, where is your Guildmaster card?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s?¡ª Eh¡­¡± Dan became flabbergasted as he searched around his pockets.


    The guard smirked. ¡°Now get out of here before I call Dan.¡±


    Dan was clearly bright red but decided not to pursue any further. He took me away by grabbing me with his hand somewhat roughly.


    "I am going to get revenge on that f¡ª person..." he muttered, I guess Dan really had a complex...


    Once we were a certain distance from the guard he apologized to me, and we went back to Lynn''s office. Surprisingly, the capital had a rather simple layout so I got to see most of it, there were some parts I guess he forgot about.

 (Chpt. 66) Seeking attention (2)

    Alice.


    Night rolled around, I had been looking at the ground for god knows how long. Did they forget about me? Did Aizen forget she was supposed to come for me? I couldn¡¯t help but feel lost, I felt abandoned, well¡­ It was a common feeling, but a part of me ached, it dreaded it.


    I was in the office with Dan, he didn¡¯t seem that worried about the situation as he read a book. His sister hadn¡¯t returned yet, and Lynn was still sleeping for whatever reason. I guess old people had a hard time dealing with alcohol or something. Dan didn¡¯t really seem to care about anything, I was stuck sitting on a chair as I fidgeted. The ground became more entertaining to watch than to draw on a piece of paper that Dan gave me.


    It was better to absentmindedly look at the ground as unease took over me than drawing as I got anxious. It was already night time and yet, I was still here. Part of me just wanted to run out and go looking for Aizen or Yami, part of me wanted to stay in case they came just as I left. Part of me just wanted to blame myself for letting this happen¡­


    ¡°Just where are th?¡ª¡± My hollow mutter was interrupted by the office door slamming.


    ¡°Brother, I am here!¡± It was Dan¡¯s sister, she cheerfully sprinted across the room and lunged herself at Dan for a hug. Dan didn¡¯t even bother to dodge and just allowed her to rub her cheek on him.


    ¡°So, how did it go??¡± Dan calmly asked as his sister still rubbed herself on him. ¡°Wait¡­ Why are you all dusty?!¡± Dan suddenly asked as he realized he was full of dust.


    ¡°Ehehe, you see¡­ The new mage mistook me for you!¡± Dan didn¡¯t seem to be amused. ¡°Anyway, she was amazing! It suddenly went Boom! And a lot of people fainted!¡± She was oddly excited, Dan seemed oddly worried and also slightly mad.


    ¡°And, you are okay right?¡± He asked with slight nervousness.


    ¡°Yep! Lin saved me!¡± Who was Lin? I am not following¡­ Dan sighed in relief.


    ¡°I see¡­¡± he paused and then smiled as he lovingly patted his sister. ¡°Good job.¡± She gave a bright smile.


    They continued chatting, but I stopped paying attention, the door was more important. Although there was no one else coming in, for the time being, it shouldn¡¯t take that long right?


    I waited a few seconds, a few minutes¡­My excitement dwindled and I started to feel slight nervousness, maybe something happened, or maybe¡­ I shouldn¡¯t think about that, maybe they are just late.


    I kept waiting, an hour went by. I still had slight hopes, however, I felt a sinking feeling in my heart, I felt extreme nausea and just felt unwell in general, I had been feeling nervous and just waited for the worst. However, nothing was happening, maybe the worst had happened.


    I waited with overwhelming anxiety for a few more hours, but in the end, none of them came.


    The worst thought came to my mind, I started breathing harshly and rapidly, I felt my heart-rate quickened and my nose started feeling sensitive and slightly pained, my eyes started getting warm and my cheeks felt slightly cold from the tears streaming down my face. It was obvious, I didn¡¯t realize it, but it was more than obvious, I was more of an obstacle than anything for both of them.


    ¡°They left me..¡± I hesitantly said as I sniffled. Dan finally picked up on what was happening to me.


    ¡°They didn¡¯t¡­¡± Dan said with zero amusement, but I just shook my head in denial. It was more than obvious. Who would want me around? Even though I thought I was accepted, I still didn¡¯t tell them anything about me, what a joke¡­


    A dry laugh escaped my lips. Dan suddenly showed up in front of me and firmly grabbed my shoulders, looking directly into my eyes. He had a really serious and scary expression.


    ¡°They did not leave.¡± He firmly stated.


    I averted my gaze to break eye contact. I didn¡¯t really believe him, but I did not want to voice out my thoughts. What will he know? Has he ever been abandoned? I don¡¯t think so¡­


    ¡°Umm¡­ If they left, how about you look for them¡­¡± Dan¡¯s sister sheepishly stated as she joined into the conversation, my eyes widened and I got a bit calm hearing her.


    ¡°Like that makes any se?¡ª¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s look for them!¡± I hurriedly interrupted Dan before he could even finish his sentence.


    ¡°I told you they didn¡¯t leave you¡­¡±


    ¡°How do you know?¡± I asked with a bit of frustration.


    ¡®While I don¡¯t want to think they left me, Dan¡¯s sister is back, she has been back for hours, just what happened?¡¯ I wiped my tears with new-found hope and stood up from the chair. I grabbed Dan¡¯s hand and started bringing him out of the room, his sister also hurriedly followed not wanting to be left alone. We ended up leaving Lynn in the room with the doodles I made on his face.


    * * *


    Upon leaving the building I felt my hand get yanked in pain, almost as if I was pulling stone forcefully. I looked back and it was Dan firmly standing, he sighed and held his head as if he had a headache, followed by another sigh.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know where to begin¡­¡± He paused. ¡°Why would you believe they left you.¡±


    ¡°I-I was¡­¡± I became silent with hesitation, should Dan even know? He sighed again seeing my silence.


    ¡°Well, whatever. I am telling you now, they didn¡¯t. So, let us wait.¡± Even though what he said carried a sense of security and reassurance, even though he was probably right, there was still a thorn. My lips started quivering and I started shaking, Dan took a step back.


    I felt warmth on my hand and tugging. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s just go.¡± It was Dan¡¯s sister. I hurriedly nodded in happiness. Even though what I was doing was wrong, there was still something that bothered me.


    Dan sighed in defeat and allowed himself to get pulled by his sister. ¡°I still think I am right¡­¡± Dan commented in annoyance. His sister just sighed and ignored him, I personally just ignored him.


    We walked and walked, continuously held by Dan¡¯s sister hand, hers was delicate and smooth, Dan¡¯s was soft yet firm, it was kind of crazy to think they almost look the same and could be mistaken. Still¡­ I wonder where is Aizen or Yami, and why none of them came¡­ Did they forget about me? Are they busy? Just¡­ What happened. I sighed in a bit of sadness and loneliness.


    ¡°Stop.¡± I realized we were standing right in front of the gate guard after I had finally recovered my reasoning. The guard was still carrying the same feeling of strong and firm as always, he had some extreme dedication.


    ¡°Well, if it isn¡¯t Dan?¡± He looked at Dan¡¯s sister. ¡°And Mia¡­¡± He said with a bit of annoyance as he looked at Dan. I could tell Dan was in a terrible mood, mostly because we had dragged him across town.


    Dan laughed.


    ¡°What¡¯s so funny Mia?¡±


    Dan pulled out the guild master card. ¡°Mia was it? Yeah¡­ I am Mia¡­¡± His voice was cold and gave the guard cold feet and his face instantly became dead-pale.


    ¡°...¡± After a slight second of panic the guard hurriedly prostrated on the ground. ¡°Please forgive me!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s better. Hey...¡± He whispered to his ear. "So, I don''t like when people mock me." The guard was shivering.


    "P=Please, spare me!" How did it turn out like this?!


    "Umm... Brother can you not?" He sighed.


    "Fine..." He stood up, the guard sighed. "Buuut, I might just come around later~" The guard shivered


    Dan sighed with satisfaction as if his frustration had been washed away.


    Without any hesitation Dan started walking forward, he paused as he saw us standing still looking at the poor guard. ¡°Not coming?¡± He said with slight confusion.


    I nodded with slight hesitation and started walking, Mia did the same. We walked and got caught up with Dan, he started walking alongside us, with a lot less frustration. We walked through the amazing bridge and arrived at an open-feeling area, the first thing that got my attention was a garden.


    A myriad of flowers, beautifully trimmed bushes, it was a garden just fitting for a monstrous white castle that looked like one of those in kids'' books. I kind of gulped seeing one of the things I had been wanting to see for quite some time, maybe not exactly the thing, but it was quite picturesque.


    I forgot what I came here for and got entranced by the beauty of the garden, slowly approaching it with slight curiosity and in pursuit of discovery. I did not get stopped by Dan or his sister for whatever reason, but it didn¡¯t matter. As soon as I got close to a blue triangle-shaped flower I felt a slight tingle in my ears. It made me lift my head, and I saw a beautiful tree right at the center of the garden.


    It was really thick, I would say the trunk was around the same thickness as Fenri¡¯s length¡­ Making that comparison made me slightly upset but that did not last as soon as I looked at it again, it looked firm and insurmountable, it was¡­ Amazing¡­ Almost as if it was the world tree referenced in all those books I read and saw pictures of. Well, it was described to be as tall as a mountain, but that¡¯s just impossible.


    I felt a slightly weird sensation for a moment but I did not pay much attention as I was distracted looking at the tree.


    I heard a slight and familiar high pitched shout that made me snap out of admiring the tree, I noticed Dan and his sister were looking at me with confusion, seeing I was paying so much attention to a tree I wouldn¡¯t blame them. Coming back to my senses I started going in the direction I heard the shout.


    My ears picked up cheerful and warm chatting from two girls, I recognized their voice, it was them. I got closer to the door and heard some more chatting, although it was still muffled, I could still recognize them. I felt a lot of emotions suddenly surge inside me.


    ¡°Well, now w?¡ª¡±


    ¡°I-I can¡¯t believe you left me!¡± I exclaimed without a plan or absolutely anything for that matter. I felt abandoned, it felt like they went to do their things without taking me along. I felt mad¡­


    ¡°I told you that they are not leaving you¡­¡± Dan reinstated his thoughts.


    ¡°Dan is bad with kids.¡± Mia told Aizen and Yami. ¡°How silly of you brother.¡± Yami instantly became confused and Aizen tilted her head.


    ¡°What do you mean by left?¡± Aizen asked


    ¡°You left me there¡­ Waiting the entire day! J-Just how could you?!¡± I didn¡¯t even know what to say. ¡°Just why?¡± I started crying in frustration.


    As I cried Aizen seemed awfully confused, and Yami did not look any better. I felt warmth and firm pressure on my shoulder.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t intend to leave you, at least not for the entire day¡­¡± Aizen said with slight regret, ¡°Although I don¡¯t quite understand why are you like this¡­¡± She added.


    ¡°I-I thought you had left me, gone without me¡­ Elsewhere¡­¡± At least, that¡¯s what I believed.


    Aizen nodded.  ¡°And?"


    ¡°... And¡­¡± I muttered her words, I think she wanted me to continue, or rather, explain to her why I was behaving like this. ¡°And¡­ I-I arrived here¡­¡±


    ¡°And?¡± She continued persuading.


    ¡°Well, when I saw you both I felt relieved¡­¡± I sheepishly explained. ¡°But at the same time, I felt excluded, because I wasn¡¯t here with both of you¡­¡± I stopped sobbing, after realizing the nonsensical reasoning I truly had.


    ¡°I see....¡± Aizen nodded and placed her hand on her chin as if she was an old sage. ¡°Well, you are here now aren¡¯t you?¡± She patted me with a smile.


    ¡°... Yeah¡­¡± I felt slightly embarrassed.


    "Sorry I didn''t come earlier, things happened." She gave me a bitter smile.


    ¡°Wait!¡± Yami randomly shouted. We all looked at her with confusion, even Fenri did. ¡°Why are there two Dans?¡± Eh¡­


    ¡°Yami are you okay?¡± I asked out of concern, sure, they looked similar but they both clearly had different haircuts, besides, Mia had a different type of charm than Dan, Dan was just¡­ Dan.


    ¡°You think so too?¡± Aizen asked as she tilted her head. ¡°Yeah, I mean¡­ I cannot tell them apart aside from clothing.¡±


    Yami observed both of them as they stood on the doorway. Dan had a face of annoyance and sighed in defeat. Meanwhile, his sister was just smiling. Dan patiently waited for Yami to say something, yet¡­ All she did was observe both of them with a discerning eye. She finally cheerfully nodded.


    ¡°I can¡¯t tell the difference!¡±


    ¡°Right?!¡± Aizen excitedly agreed.


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± Was that the entire reason for her silence?


    ¡°Is that all you could think of?!¡± Dan questioned with annoyance and slight disappointment. ¡°To think I got dragged here just for this¡­¡± He sighed. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Mia, I am quite tired.¡± He grabbed his sister¡¯s hand.


    ¡°But I want to see the white-haired girl!¡±


    ¡°You will be seeing her¡­¡± Dan added with slight tiredness.


    ¡°Eh¡­ If you say so¡­ But it better be true! Is she old?!¡± After a childish argument, they both left.


    Yami, Aizen and I were left wordlessly staring at the doorway. After a few seconds of silence, Yami opened her mouth.


    ¡°Um¡­ So, who can explain to me why was there Dan and then a childish Dan?¡± She asked with confusion.


    ¡°Apparently Dan has a sister, although they both look the same to me,¡± Aizen answered, I nodded in response.


    ¡°I see¡­¡± Yami paused. ¡°Well, I am glad we got this over with¡­¡± She sounded oddly relieved but¡­


    ¡°What you got over with?¡± I asked with confusion.


    Hearing me Yami paused and thought to herself, thinking about what to say, I guess. Aizen approached me with a slight smile and showed me a bracelet. It had shiny white scales that emanated a blue-hue. Although I realized it wasn''t a bracelet, it was a gauntlet.


    ¡°Beautiful¡­¡± I couldn¡¯t help but mutter at the reflection of the light. Aizen knelt down in front of me and started talking.


    ¡°You see Ari, this gauntlet was made by K-Yami, it was quite the¡­¡± She paused. ¡°The struggle¡­ Seeing she fainted while making it and such¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­ Is she okay?!¡± I asked in a panic, Aizen slowly nodded.


    ¡°Anyway, this gauntlet was probably one of her best creations, and I am happy she delivered.¡± Best creations? How many things has she made? Delivered? ¡°You see, I asked her to make me a scale armor, unfortunately, she couldn¡¯t quite deliver, so she ended up making a gauntlet¡­¡± Aizen looked at it for some reason and warmly smiled.


    ¡°I see¡­¡± I didn¡¯t really know what to say, what kind of gauntlet was that anyway? I have never seen anything like that before. It seemed to be yet another item, Yami always carried items around. Wait, did she make most of the items? Eh¡­ I saw her smithing back in Mirl, but¡­ Was she really that amazing? No, wait¡­ I knew she was amazing, but just how amazing¡­


    ¡°Ari,¡± Yami called for me.


    ¡°Y-Yes?¡±


    ¡°Do you like the gauntlet?¡± Eh? I nodded in confusion. ¡°That¡¯s good, Aizen cried over it, so it better had been worth it...¡± How does that even work?


    ¡°How couldn¡¯t I?!¡± She paused. ¡°Besides, it almost killed you so...¡± She muttered with slight resentment.


    Eh¡­ I am not following, what kind of cursed object could kill someone?


    Yami sighed in defeat. ¡°It was pretty amazing seeing it wiggle before I fainted¡­¡± Eh?


    ¡°The fact that you fainted saved you, dummy¡­¡± Aizen said with slight tiredness. She sounded oddly sympathetic to Yami for some reason. ¡°Well, at least you are okay now. So stop bringing it up!¡± Aizen hit Yami on top of the head.


    ¡°Ouch! You didn¡¯t need to do that...¡±  She rubbed her temple slightly teary-eyed, meanwhile, all I could do was stand there not really following the flow of the conversation or understanding anything at all.


    I kind of felt excluded. I looked around for something as they kept chatting to themselves. Suddenly I felt a bump behind me and a gentle forward push, it was Fenri. He seemed to understand what I was feeling, I couldn¡¯t help but tightly hug him instead of joining into the conversation as he initially intended.


    ¡°Well, that is done. Besides, I don¡¯t think we should keep talking about this Ku-Yami since we have Ari here now.¡± Eh? Aizen suddenly closed in distance to me and tightly squished me to her side.


    ¡°Eh¡­ But I wanted to keep talking about the item¡­¡± What item?


    ¡°Tsk, that doesn¡¯t matter, it just happened. Besides, what can a title or two do?¡± Did she just say title?! Why do I keep getting included into these conversations I barely understand!


    ¡°You are right¡­¡± Yami sighed in defeat. ¡°Let¡¯s just worry about it tomorrow¡­¡± After another sigh, she looked at me and her eyes widened. ¡°Wait¡­ Ari¡­¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡± What? Did something happen?


    ¡°Sorry!¡± She exclaimed as she hugged me. ¡°I forgot you were there and just kept talking with Aizen¡­ You see, something really weird happened today¡­¡± Eh¡­


    ¡°The um¡­ Bright light and shaking from the castle?¡± I asked trying to guess.


    ¡°Eh, no¡­ That¡¯s what Aizen did¡­¡± Yami pushed it into Aizen with a dismissive wave.


    ¡°Wait, what? Aizen did that?!¡± But...  how?


    ¡°Long story¡­¡± Aizen evaded the question entirely.


    Yami seemed to want to keep talking but she thought to herself and after a slight quick nod, she opened her mouth. ¡°Well, let¡¯s go back.¡± With a sheepish nod, I followed behind them. Aizen occasionally apologized for leaving me there, which made me explain that it wasn¡¯t so bad. It also made me feel bad and slight guilt. Almost as if I was seeking attention.


    I made myself a mental note to never do that again.

 (Chpt. 67) Getting unasked exposure (1)

    Alice.


    Back to the usual, enjoy.


    ?Yami?


    ¡°Nyaaaaah.¡± I let out an oddly cute yawn as I stretched, it felt good to wake up after a whole night¡¯s sleep. I looked around me, everything seemed normal. Fenri sleeping with Aizen on the floor and Cecil and Ari next to each other.


    ¡°Mhmm!¡± I stretched once more before finally fully opening my eyes, it was dark and there was the barely a dim pale-blue light coming from the blinds, the coldness of the air really brought a sense of coziness to the chilly darkness of the room.


    With my dizzy vision I looked around trying to make out the things around me, I looked at the walls and blinds. After some more looking my vision finally became clear. I looked in front of me and closed my eyes with a sigh. I opened my eyes and?¡ª


    ¡°Eek!¡± A pair of deep amber eyes were closely observing me.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± It was a confused and soft voice.


    ¡°Eh?¡± It was Aizen, she suddenly popped out of nowhere. ¡°I was confused¡­¡± I sheepishly murmured in explanation.


    ¡°Weird¡­¡± She thought for a second. ¡°Whatever¡­ I got work to do!¡± Aizen said with a cheerful smile.


    I couldn¡¯t help but tilt my head as she woke Ari and Cecil up by shaking them repeatedly. What could she possibly mean with: ¡°work to do¡±? I don¡¯t quite get it. I mean, I do remember her being some type of new mage thing-title-coronation, or something along those lines. But, what kind of work?


    ¡°Mhmm¡­¡± Ari made a weird sound as she got shaken. ¡°Stop it... ¡° She trailed into a mutter. After some more happy mutters she finally groggily opened her eyes. She sat up-right with confusion. ¡°Um¡­ What?¡± Her voice was rather quiet.


    Cecil was still fast asleep, Aizen stopped shaking her for a second and looked at Ari with a smile.


    ¡°You know what time it is?¡± Aizen randomly asked.


    Ari quickly looked at me to see what she was on about but I was just as confused, she looked back with doubt and confusion. ¡°Umm¡­ No?¡±


    With a mischievous smile she opened her mouth. ¡°That¡¯s a shame, you will see soon enough.~¡± Her mood seemed better than usual. She went back to shaking Cecil.


    After a few more minutes she finally woke up and she was just as confused as Ari, and of course, Aizen did the exact same weird questioning. Making her just as confused as Ari in the process. I started thinking on what happened that made her so cheerful, like the gauntlet is nice but I don¡¯t think that was it, rather¡­ She wouldn¡¯t be as excited about such a thing. I wonder.


    Aizen stood at the center of the room with a smirk and looked at both of the girls.


    ¡°So, what time is it?¡± She asked in a playful yet demanding tone.


    ¡°Umm¡­ I don¡¯t know¡­¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either¡­¡±


    Both of the girls gave similar replies, in response Aizen sighed in disappointment.


    ¡°I see, not knowing¡­ huh¡­¡± After yet another sigh she just left the room.


    ¡°What was that about?¡± Ari decided to ask me.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­¡± I shrugged.


    ¡°She was weird¡­ But I wonder what happened? I mean, she seemed thrilled about something¡­¡±


    ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ari started thinking before her eyes lit up. ¡°Wasn¡¯t she replacing the elf?!¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­ was she?¡± Was I ever told such a thing? I don¡¯t remember to be honest.


    ¡°Eh¡­ Is she really?¡± Cecil was just as confused.


    Well, now thinking about it, it must be very thrilling for her to get something such as a ¡°power-position¡±, if you could even call it that. I think the elf was important, but I don¡¯t know much about him, besides¡­ Wasn¡¯t the elf a teacher? I mean, I don¡¯t think Aizen would do a good job dealing with a bunch of kids, but I don¡¯t really know much about such things. Now thinking about it, Aizen just left¡­


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you girls supposed to go to the academy?¡± I asked with a bit of confusion.


    ¡°Oh¡­ yeah¡­ I forgot¡­¡± Ari commented as she scratched her head, meanwhile Cecil was petrified and after a short pause she left the room in a hurry without making a pause. ¡°Well¡­ I don¡¯t know much magic, so¡­ Can I come with you Yami?¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± What¡¯s this out of the blue? After scratching my cheek as I thought. ¡°Sure¡­ I guess¡­ Will Aizen care?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ It¡¯s her fault for leaving us, don¡¯t you think?¡±


    ¡°I guess... ¡° Did Ari become Aizen all of the sudden or what?


    Ari suddenly glued herself to my arm. ¡°Let us go!¡± She cheerfully exclaimed.


    ¡°Eh¡­ But, your clothes¡­¡±


    She tilted her head. ¡°Oh¡­¡± Upon further inspection. ¡°You are right¡­ I am wearing the bed-time clothes that Cecil gave me... Do you like them?¡± They seemed like soft fabric kind of like a pajama, although I kind of wonder why she called them ¡°bed-time¡± clothes, weird¡­


    ¡°Yeah, I do¡­ But if you don¡¯t change we can¡¯t go anywhere.¡± I personally always wore the same clothes because wearing anything more feminine would be¡­ Weird¡­ I don¡¯t know how to explain it but I just wouldn¡¯t be comfortable. Not like the clothes I was wearing were manly, but still...


    Ari left my side and started changing in front of me, grabbing her clothes from a corner on the ground. I didn¡¯t really worry about it being dirty, I am pretty sure they had the ¡°self-service¡± function or whatever, and I am also sure the maids and butlers cleaned our clothes whenever they could. However, I was bothered by one thing. Without a second thought, I looked away.


    A few moments passed, the calm and constant fabric kneading sound was oddly soothing. Some more time passed, I closed my eyes to the calm and sleep-inducing sounds, my mind started drifting away, I had just woken up not too long ago After I short yawn I indulged on my thoughts?¡ªOh, the ever so precious metal¡­


    * * *


    ¡°Yami¡­¡± Tug. ¡°Yami¡­¡± Tug. ¡°Yami!¡± I felt a strong force pull on my body, I fell straight to the ground making a deafened dull sound on the carpet.


    ¡°eh... what?¡± I looked around, I was in a slightly dark room, the blinds had a blue light coming through their gaps, the chilly atmosphere felt cold and nice to my skin, the ground was cold and soft. How¡­ Comfortable¡­ Although, my vision was hazy and blurry, I saw a weird pillar-like thing in front of me?¡ª Eh¡­ it¡¯s moving...


    ¡°Yami, how long are you going to look at the wall for?¡± Eh, the weird-pillar like thing is talking. ¡°Yami, are you okay?¡±


    I tried following the voice, however, it went up. ¡°Oh¡­¡± it was Ari, and the ¡°pillar-like thing¡± was her foot right in front of my face¡­ I hastily stood up and nodded in a rush. ¡°Y-Yeah¡­ Let¡¯s go¡­! Somewhere¡­¡± I had no idea where we were going, I thought it was better to just stay and enjoy the mansion for once. Didn''t help that I had become pretty disoriented.


    ¡°So¡­ Where is this somewhere?¡± Ari asked with a bit of enthusiasm.


    Well¡­ I had no idea, but since she asked I guess we could go to... ¡°The market¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh, that¡¯s not very mysterious is it?¡± What is she even asking about?


    ¡°No?¡±


    She thought for a second. ¡°Well, since you said somewhere in a bit of doubt, I thought it was a mystery, so¡­¡± Ah¡­ I see.


    ¡°Well, do you have anywhere you want to go?¡± I decided to ask Ari. Surprisingly, she just quietly shook her head in denial, I guess the market it was. Although, there was nothing there, well¡­ the guilds were there, but I don¡¯t think we could do something entertaining¡­


    I thought about something we could do over there as we left the mansion, we did not run into any servants and the place was quiet, mostly because it was the early morning (probably). As we approached the mansion gate I couldn¡¯t help but notice the guard yawning, he was always in high spirits so it was odd.


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± He rubbed his eye as he saw us. ¡°You girls also leaving that early? I did not think all of you would leave at this hour¡­ Well, good luck.¡± With that short sentence he opened the gate and gestured us to pass.


    I did not really say anything, just waved and smiled, Ari did the same. What I found weird was that Aizen and Cecil had left already, I mean we did not see them go out, or hear them for that matter. Well, I don¡¯t think we should worry about it that much, Cecil is with Aizen, and Aizen is¡­ Aizen¡­ Yeah.


    As we absentmindedly walked down the long paved cobblestone road something came to my mind.


    ¡°Hey Ari, do humans give more experience points than monsters?¡± I asked out of curiosity. She suddenly stopped in her tracks and looked at me with a stone-like-serious- expression.


    ¡°Yes they do, although¡­ I hope you are not thinking what I am thinking¡­¡± I hurriedly shook my head. She sighed in relief. ¡°That¡¯s good¡­ You scared me for a second. They do for various reasons, actually, if you think about it, they don¡¯t give more experience than monsters.¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡± That was confusing.


    ¡°Well, a monster can evolve and level, just like Fenri for example. However, most monsters will never reach that stage, however, humans do.¡± Oh¡­ ¡°Anyway, as we all know the more experience a being has the more it gives since according to legends there is a finite amount of experience in the entire world, it¡¯s an ever-cycling-thing.¡± Eh¡­ I did not inspect such an insightful reply from Ari. She thought for a second and chuckled. ¡°Although I don¡¯t believe in such things, I can only speak from what I hear.¡± How reassuring¡­ After a more light-hearted chuckle she smiled. ¡°Well, don¡¯t think too much about it, it¡¯s not something you should worry about anyway.¡±


    ¡°Okay¡­¡± After an awkward response on my part we continued talking, Ari didn¡¯t seem as cheerful as before, which kind of made me feel bad for asking such a random thing, to a kid out of all things¡­ Also, I had never thought about it before, I mean, in the game monsters did have levels, but it was just a number, it still is, but this kind of feels more like an ecosystem at the moment.


    We ran into the guards at the entrance but they ignored us, I guess their check-up was a one-time thing or something. New faces, I suppose¡­ Now¡­ What would be fun to do?


    ¡°Hey Ari, want to do a quest?¡±


    She tilted her head. ¡°Quest? Like¡­ Adventure?¡±


    ¡°Yeah!¡± I cheerfully said.


    ¡°But¡­ Fenri stayed asleep¡­¡± She said with doubt and insecurity.


    ¡°Well, don¡¯t worry, you have me. I have survived being killed two times now!¡± I said as I puffed my chest with pride.


    ¡°Woo! You go girly!¡± A random drunk guy said that before he passed out. Ari looked at him with a bitter smile and turned back to me.


    ¡°I guess¡­ We can do that. Just don¡¯t get hurt.¡± I nodded to her request as we continued walking down further into the plaza in the market¡¯s direction. Well, I shouldn¡¯t call it market, it¡¯s more of a¡­ Market road that goes directly to a castle¡­ Yeah.


    The street was fairly deserted, but the guilds had lights coming from the windows, a few other shops and inns also had their lights on, street food wasn¡¯t really a thing for now. Without thinking too much about it, Ari and I went into the adventurer¡¯s guild.

 (Chpt. 68) Getting unasked exposure (2)

    "Ari, do you see anything. I am not finding anything on this board¡­¡±


    ¡°Not at all¡­¡± Ari replied with disappointment, I didn''t blame her. The quest boards were practically empty, or rather. There was just a lot of gathering requests, escorts to god-knows-where or just subjugations that required a lot of traveling. There wasn¡¯t anything that was relatively close, or nice for that matter.


    I looked around the guild, it was completely desolate, the wooden floors had visible drink stains from partying, the tables had passed-out drunk adventurers. People were sleeping, others were just not moving, the staff was also sleeping at the counter, or rather. Silently looking at the tabletop with closed eyes, yeah¡­ The guild was just a mess and the requests boards were empty (to me).


    ¡°What now?¡± Ari tiredly asked as she stood by my side.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­¡± I paused. ¡°Maybe they will bring quests at a later time?¡±


    ¡°Maybe¡­ The question is, when is that time¡­¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡±


    Looks like we were practically stuck without being able to do something.


    After a short sigh, I grabbed Ari¡¯s hand and headed to the counter, we needed information, and who to ask other than someone that works at the guild, it was the common thing. We arrived in front of the counter with a bit of worry, deciding to go to the first receptionist who was at the far left. A cute woman with black hair, she was a head taller than me and sleepy, or rather. She was sleeping.


    ¡°Umm, excuse me?¡± My soft voice did not make her react or open her eyes for that matter. ¡°Umm¡­¡± I decided to start tapping the desk with my nails as I called for her. Ari did not seem to know what to do either, so I continued. ¡°..."


    ¡°... Wa?¡± She finally opened her eyes with heavy dizziness and incredibly confusion, I could tell how lost she was. Although I did not blame her, waking up can be rough.


    She groggily looked around until finally she looked down to see me. She slightly tilted her head in confusion at the kid who was looking at her with slight hope (me), and continued to scan her surroundings, she saw her peers also sleeping, she saw the messy hall and then it all finally made sense. She blinked repeatedly in a hurry.


    ¡°I-I am sorry about that. H-How can I help you girl? I-I mean¡­ Customer¡­ I mean¡­ A-Adventurer...¡± She was bright red from embarrassment.


    ¡°Em¡­ I wanted to ask about quests, or adventures, or missions¡­ Or whatever you call them¡­¡± I smiled in awkwardness having completely forgotten the right word they used.


    ¡°... Right¡­ Requests was it?¡± Eh, was it that? Well, quests sounds kind of the same¡­ ¡°Well¡­¡± She awkwardly paused as she glanced in the distance. ¡°Looks like they are quite empty¡­¡±


    ¡°How insightful¡­¡± I couldn¡¯t help but comment that after she assessed the situation.


    With a gulp she continued. ¡°Well¡­ I-If you don¡¯t mind me asking, w-why are you here. D-Dear adventurer¡­¡± She seemed nervous.


    ¡°Well¡­ Actually, I wanted to know when will there be new quests available¡­ Em, I mean¡­ Requests.¡±


    ¡°Ah yes¡­ They should be arriving along with the Guildmaster.¡± Ah¡­


    ¡°Well, thank you, umm¡­ Receptionist¡­¡± Instead of giving me her name she just did a forceful nod, with a shrug I turned away and took an empty table with Ari.


    ¡°She was weird,¡± Ari commented.


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± I don¡¯t know what was with her, or why she was so nervous, truly weird indeed.


    ¡°So, Dan is bringing in the quests?¡± Ari asked with a bit of hope.


    ¡°That should be it, yes¡­¡± Although, when was Dan arriving? That was the thing I wondered the most.


    As I thought about the boredom I was suffering as well as experimenting in my head with various metals I realized something. Ari seemed slightly troubled.


    ¡°Is something the matter?¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­ Well¡­ When I was left alone, I might¡¯ve done something bad to Lynn¡­¡± Who was Lynn? ¡°Since he has to direct the academy, I wonder what will happen¡­¡± Ah¡­ So, probably the director or principal¡­ Or someone important.


    As I looked sympathetically at Ari, I heard a loud knock and the door was forcefully opened. Heavy steps echoed on the wooden floor, who could it be? I lifted my gaze only to see a pair of arms holding a bunch of boxes, said arms were slender and childish.


    ¡°Why¡­ must¡­ it¡­ be¡­ like¡­ this¡­ every day!¡± The person exclaimed in annoyance, dropping the boxes with a loud thud that echoed throughout the hall.


    ¡°So it was you¡­¡± No wonder said voice was familiar.


    ¡°Huh, what?¡± Dan looked in my direction in confusion, his eyes widened in surprise for a second and then sighed. He sluggishly picked up the boxes yet again and brought them to the counter. Dropping them again.


    Bang!


    ¡°What?!¡± A high-pitched voice asked in panic.


    ¡°Eh!?¡± Another one.


    ¡°... What happened?¡± The receptionist from before was confused as well.


    Looks like Dan¡¯s antics woke everyone at the counter up, he didn¡¯t look annoyed by seeing them sleeping, so I guess it was a common thing. Ari seemed to still be worried about what she did, although I don''t know what she did. It couldn¡¯t be that bad, right? I tried offering some words of reassurance.


    ¡°It can¡¯t be that bad, besides, even if it was. As long as you didn¡¯t harm him I think it won¡¯t be much of a problem.¡± I just tried guessing.


    ¡°If you say so¡­¡± She didn¡¯t seem that cheered up. ¡°... Maybe it¡¯s not as bad as I make it out to be.¡± I nodded with reassurance, which made Ari slightly more cheered up.


    Dan started clapping his hands to gather the attention of the receptionists, or workers? I don¡¯t know how he would reference them.


    ¡°Alright, new requests came. Go to work.¡±


    ¡°¡±¡±Yes!¡±¡±¡± All of them exclaimed in unison and started to frantically take documents out of the boxes and arrange them, some looked like documents some were quests. It was quite weird to see the Guildmaster bring those, I mean, wouldn¡¯t they have a dedicated delivery man or something?


    I heard some footsteps coming my way but I did not think much about it, after a few brief moments they stopped.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ What do we have here?¡± Dan sent us an inquisitive gaze, after sensing our silence he sighed. ¡°What do you need¡­ I¡¯m tired, so please make it brief.¡±


    ¡°Em¡­ We just came for a request, no need to be so¡­ Aggressive¡­¡± I was taken aback by Dan¡¯s straightforward attitude so I made a claim that did not make much sense.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know if ¡®aggressive¡¯ is the right way to describe it¡­ But, sure, grab any request you like as long as it''s within your rank, now let me rest.¡± He turned around and waved his farewell at us, he didn¡¯t seem mad, so I did not take his rudeness personally, but it seemed weird to see Dan in such a state, but now that I thought about it, he was kind of like that when we first met him, professional mode I guess.


    I felt some tugging on my cloak. ¡°Yami, look.¡± Ari pointed at the boards, the receptionists were pinning new requests among all the boards, since Dan made a point of making it within my rank, I paid special attention to the Silver and Gold boards, Cobalt one did not interest me much. It was a bit too extreme for me.


    ¡°Should we go see?¡± Ari asked with excitement, however, I slowly shook my head.


    ¡°It¡¯s better to wait for all requests to be posted.¡± The receptionists were still in the middle of pinning things, so it was better to just not interrupt them. I¡¯d feel bad for them. Ari awkwardly nodded to my ¡°command¡±, if you could even call it that.


    We waited and waited, until finally, they had finished putting up requests, it only took a few minutes so it wasn¡¯t so bad, although I could tell Ari was bored, however, she did not say anything. She was waiting for me to say something or do something. Before that, I looked to the door and into the window, the light filtering through the clear glass was a bright deep blue, so it was still quite the early morning. I wondered what was the normal time at which adventurers came.


    ¡°Well, we can check now¡­¡± I awkwardly informed Ari, I kind of felt guilty for making her wait. She awkwardly nodded in response, so it did not help with my feelings. We stood up and headed to the request board with gold borders, or the Gold rank request board.


    ¡°Subjugate werewolf in the mountains, Save the village, Steal herbs from the hermit¡­¡± I kept reading through the quests, my confusion grew bigger and bigger the more I read on it. ¡°''Destroy the morale of the goblins''¡­ What the hell is this¡­¡± I couldn¡¯t help but say my own thoughts out-loud, Ari was distracted reading the quests as well. I could tell from her expression that it was not any different, which wasn¡¯t very encouraging. I mean, we weren¡¯t looking for anything specific, just something fun, I guess.


    Ari had been reading the Silver request board as I read the Gold one. ¡°Hey, Ari, did you find something?¡± I asked with little hope as I waited for the worst answer.


    ¡°Um, unless you are interested in yarn gathering in the canyon¡­ I don¡¯t think so¡­¡± Wait¡­ how would I even gather yarn at the canyon, isn¡¯t it manufactured? Well, something to later think about, some other day¡­ I sighed in defeat after hearing other requests that Ari found.


    We sat back down. ¡°Are you sure you are not interested in a subjugation one?¡± Ari asked with doubt, I just quietly shook my head in reply.


    ¡°I mean, we could do that, but it¡¯s not quite what I am looking for¡­ Although I don¡¯t know what I am looking for¡­¡± I added my own thoughts, Ari sighed in defeat. She quietly started thinking to herself, before abruptly opening her eyes.


    ¡°What if we check the blue request board?!¡± She cheerfully asked.


    ¡°Eh, you mean Cobalt? I mean, I guess we could check that, although I don¡¯t have many hopes for it, if at all¡­¡± With yet another sigh I stood up with Ari following behind.


    After a bit of walking we stood in front of the board, upon first glance I noticed the quests were roughly the same, however, they were a lot more extreme, such as ?¡ª Dive into the acid cave to get samples, or, destroy a goblin nest; likely to have champions and king. They were quests geared towards adventurer parties more than anything else.


    Then I read an extremely familiar word. ¡°Dungeon¡­¡± I muttered it out-loud which made Ari confused and follow my gaze.


    [Conquer and Destroy ?¡ª Dungeon subjugation ?¡ª Details are unknown, possible rare minerals and rare metals inside. Base pay: 2 Gold coins another 2 upon completion.]


    It looked incredibly sketchy. Ari did not seem really keen on it either, but what was the worst thing that could happen. It¡¯s probably just a low-rank dungeon if it¡¯s on the Cobalt rank board, while details are unknown it must¡¯ve not been threatening enough.


    Without a second thought, I grabbed the quest, Ari firmly held my hand at that instant. ¡°Are you sure about this?¡±


    I firmly nodded. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I know a way, besides, worst case scenario we fail the quest, not really life-threatening, just believe in me,¡± I said with utmost confidence, if it was a dungeon then it most likely had all of the dungeon characteristics. Which made it rather predictable.


    We brought it to a receptionist, unfortunately, the one from before was gone. She looked at the paper with confusion.


    ¡°Are you sure you girls can take this on, I mean¡­ It¡¯s Cobalt¡­ Do you even have the requirements?¡± She asked with a bit of shock, I just showed her my dog-tag thing, which was silver. She turned pale and even grim.


    At that moment a group of adventurers walked into the guild. I heard some more footsteps.


    ¡°Huh, there is no dungeon request?¡±


    ¡°There must be one, I heard there was one coming!¡±


    ¡°Stop making such a fuss and just read the quests¡­¡± A tired female voice added.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Maybe someone took it already¡­ So, we better go ba?¡ª¡± One of them was nervous.


    ¡°What are you saying!? We need that quest, it will be our first dungeon clear in a year, we gotta get back strong!¡±


    At this point I turned around, one of them was a burly man with a beard and tall frame, another one was a woman that looked like some type of assassin. There was also a mage wearing robe, he also seemed to be the healer, and there was a kid that seemed slightly ramped up, he had a bow with him. It was a 4 person party.


    ¡°Umm, this girl wants to take the dungeon request, would you guys be interested in doing a party together?¡± The receptionist called out to them, which made my jaw drop. How could she?! I felt betrayed.

 (Chpt. 69) Getting unasked exposure (3)

    Alice.


    ¡°That sounds amazing!¡± The archer was already right next to me and looking at me with excitement, I didn¡¯t even know how to react. I couldn¡¯t help but be slack-jawed, I felt slight rage and annoyance.


    Quick think, isn''t there something that can get me out of this situation... Weren''t adventurer''s entitled to their own privacy or something like that?


    "Um, but... Miss receptionist... Am I not entitled to my own privacy? Besides, the adventurer''s guild isn''t allowed to just take my request away... It''s not like I don''t meet the requirements." I protested in annoyance.


    She froze for a second, and turned stiff, I guess she wasn''t prepared for that. At the moment the words exited my mouth I heard a door click.


    "I am feeling quite vengeful today." It was Dan''s voice... He peered from the stairs to look at us. "Yes, missy. You are indeed right in what you are saying, but I as the guild master can overrule such things. Besides, having two separate registrations is against the law." Was he... blackmailing me?!


    "Gee, I wonder what kind of guildmaster could allow me to do such a thing, tehee!" I looked at him as if I was completely oblivious, Dan stiffened and took a step back.


    "Just accept to return the favor! I had to take care of Ari for a day!" He said in annoyance.


    "Sigh, fine." I dropped my shoulders.


    ¡°Pleasure to meet you, name is Roy.¡± The warrior extended his hand, he had a metal chest piece and he looked a bit past his prime, I guess he was the leader. "Are you two acquainted?" He pointed at Dan and me, we kind of just averted our gaze and refused to speak about it.


    ¡°I will be at your care¡­¡± The healer/mage sheepishly added.


    ¡°Don¡¯t get in the way.¡± The assassin said that and left to the outside. What a problem.


    ¡°Looks like you all are getting along well~¡± The receptionist commented. I, of course, glared daggers at her, she was not forgiven in the slightest!


    ¡°Ahaha! I have a feeling I will get along with this one.¡± The leader suddenly wrapped his hand around my shoulder and squished me tight to his body, I guess it was his way to show friendliness.


    Ari looked troubled as she opened her mouth, I just quietly shook my head. I knew she wanted to object but it was probably for the better to not do anything about it, besides, if we fought it the outcome would be worse. Specially with Dan, I am sure Ari kind of felt guilty as well... What a problem.


    ¡°Looks like it¡¯s sealed,¡± the receptionist said with a satisfied smile. ¡°May I have your guild cards?¡±


    ¡°Sigh, here.¡± I gave mine with resignation.


    ¡°Here.¡± The leader gave her four cards, I guess one for each member. ¡°Now that I think about it, where is little missy¡¯s card?¡± He was talking about Ari.


    ¡°Ah, she is just coming along, don¡¯t mind her,¡± I said with a wry smile.


    "I see, as far as the advanced pay, it will be logged into the guild card, you can take it out from any guild you''d like~" Was it like that?


    ¡°Oh, is that so?" The leader paused and looked at me. "Now that I think about it, you must be really strong to have such confidence, you are Obsidian right?¡± The burly leader asked.


    I stiffened my smile and considered what happened last time. Being under-ranked definitely wasn''t desirable.  And I also had to maintain a good impression. ¡°Yup¡­¡± I pulled the obsidian tag that I received as Dark Shadow rather than Yami.


    ¡°W-Waa.¡± The receptionist was flabbergasted. "B-But y-you-"


    "Shhh..." I interrupted her. "Now, now, we can''t go around spreading information like that, right?" I looked at her dead cold in the eyes, she was my enemy now. The receptionist hurriedly nodded in agreement.


    ¡°Oh, impressive. Looks like we won¡¯t need to worry about you. You are obsidian and can even silence a receptionist!¡± He started laughing... ¡°We are also obsidian! You know, dungeons can be dangerous so it''s recommended to be a rank higher for dungeon quests!¡± Is that so? ¡°Well, knowing this I am at peace of mind. Allow me to introduce ourselves. We are Lighting Boar!¡± Eh is that so? He then proceeded to introduce his party members as I nodded without thinking about it.


    ¡°And you are?¡± He asked with friendliness.


    ¡°Dark Shadow¡­ Well, that¡¯s what the tag says anyway¡­¡± The tag literally had Dark Shadow engraved as a name¡­ What a problem. ¡°You can just call me Yami¡­ And this is Ari.¡±


    ¡°Hi¡­¡± She sheepishly waved at the leader, all of the other party members were outside at this point so I guess she was slightly more open to a one on one conversation.


    The leader nodded to our answer. ¡°Very well, I will be waiting outside. Departure time is now.¡± Well, I didn¡¯t really plan on preparing for it anyway, it should be something rather easy.


    The leader left the guild, it was still desolate. After a sigh, I started walking along with Ari.


    ¡°W-Wait, M-Miss Dark Shadow!¡± The receptionist cried for me. At that moment I heard something fall on the second floor and some laughter come to think it was Dan¡­


    ¡°W-What do you need?¡± I asked with a stiff smile.


    ¡°I-I am sorry for forcing you into making a party, I-I am still new here! I-i don''t know much..."


    I forced a smile.


    ¡°Don¡¯t mind it¡­¡± YOU SHOULD MIND IT! I HOPE YOU HAVE A BAD DAY! Too bad I couldn¡¯t shout at her, or rather. It was better not to. I left the guild with Ari without saying anything to the receptionist. I hope she felt bad. Needless to say, I was greatly upset, and she dares to apologize for being such a¡ª Calm down...


    Upon exiting the guild I was greeted by my new party. They didn¡¯t say anything important after greetings they started walking, I presumed that it was in the direction of the dungeon, so without thinking too much about it, I followed. I sighed just from the thought that the receptionist literally forced me into it, I mean I could¡¯ve tried to refuse it, but it was probably a bad idea... No, it was definitely a bad idea...


    ¡°Is something amiss?¡± The leader asked with curiosity, the other party members did not seem too concerned as they talked about daily life things.


    ¡°Nothing¡­¡± I slowed down my walking pace and practically forced the leader to go with his own party, they did not seem very welcoming of me. I didn¡¯t particularly care but I found it rather funny, you know. They were so excited about the dungeon thing, I expected them to be more collaborative, but I guess there was no point in expecting.


    ¡°Maybe we should just go back¡­¡± Ari silently suggested.


    ¡°Sigh, you are right. But there is something I want to confirm about dungeons, and I don¡¯t see any opportunity like this coming again any time soon¡­¡± I admitted in defeat.


    ¡°If you say so¡­¡± She paused. ¡°What about them though?¡± Ari asked with concern as she looked at the adventurers we grouped up with.


    I looked at Ari directly in her eyes. ¡°Ari, do you care about them?¡± She slowly shook her head. ¡°Then there is no problem, dungeon casualties happen, besides, they were going to do it themselves anyway, it will probably go without problem¡­¡± I realized that I was basically saying they were going to die and it didn¡¯t matter. ¡°I mean, I can try to save them if something happens¡­¡± I quickly corrected myself.


    Ari shook her head again. ¡°I am well aware that you can¡¯t save everyone¡­ Besides, I kind of expected at least one of them to die¡­¡± Eh¡­ Is she learning? Or just getting past her fear? Either way, I don¡¯t want to know. It was just an unusual reaction coming from her.


    ¡°Well, not like it matters¡­¡± I hopelessly muttered before letting out an empty sigh and resuming my normal walking pace. Ari seemed quite confused about my unusual way of acting, but I guess it was just the norm. I hadn¡¯t been in a dungeon for years, however, I would still remember my joys and dreads in them. A dungeon is a place that leaves a mark in you, it could be good or bad. Only fate knows that¡­ Or it could also be a place for free items, either goes.


    I shook my head to restart my train of thought, it was getting out of hand. In the end, a dungeon is a dungeon, that¡¯s just how I should approach it.


    ¡°Stop!¡± It was an armored guard with silver-plated armor and a nice blue helmet, I guess it signified status or something, never seen one like that before. ¡°Please show me your identifications.¡± They showed their things and he moved onto us.


    I showed him my card and then he looked at Ari. She sheepishly smiled and without thinking too much about it he gave me my card back, with a dismissive nod he let our group pass through the gates. I hadn¡¯t paid much attention to the ever-passing background as I thought, however, we were currently at the very back of the capital. The place looked like a second plaza but it was quite desolate and seemed to function more like slums rather than actual plaza. The buildings were deteriorated and people in rags were common to see.


    I didn¡¯t think much about the reason why Ari needed no card, maybe it was her age, or maybe there was something I was missing? Perhaps she had some special skill, although that would be weird. She never got asked for a card so we never got her one, maybe I should ask Dan for one? Hmm¡­ Well, Dan should definitely get me a card after this!


    We continued walking, following the leader who had a map, fortunately, the dungeon seemed to be close, just judging by everyone¡¯s light equipment, They still carried backpacks so I am sure they did not have something like an item-bag or a pocket dimension or just something for easy means of transport.


    Now that I was more aware of my surroundings I noticed that the capital was still as picturesque as ever, white everything, it still had a moat and a less stellar bridge on the back. I guess it was all fancy appearance. What I found stunning were the endless forests and lakes, it had a lot of lakes. I couldn¡¯t see the canyon that was visible from the castle, I guess it was in an entirely different direction entirely. However, that did not take me away from enjoying the early morning sun-rays and bird chirps. Ari seemed to be enjoying it as well seeing how calmly she observed around with a smile on her face.


    The other people were just chatting about their relationships and things that happened in the past year, I didn¡¯t really pay attention, or rather. I did not hear anything worth my attention, unfortunately, eavesdropping was rather easy for me for some reason, an innate skill I guess.


    We eventually started walking into the forest, this time with care. The trees had scratch marks and a few branches were missing. After a lot more walking, we found ourselves in an open area, except it wasn¡¯t pretty. The grass looked brown and dead, the place quite literally smelled like rotting bio-waste.


    ¡°Looks like we are here¡­ The dungeon¡­¡± The leader said with seriousness.


    There it was, a temple that seemed to have dug its way out of the ground, brown moss covering its black bricks, standing tall and giving bad vibes in general, a single entrance and fine engravings with skeletons on the borders of the structure, and the only doorway. The place shouted undead, which was a bit unexpected, although it also made me relaxed. Undead were the easiest things to deal with.


    ¡°It¡¯s undead¡­¡± The archer said with fear.


    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we go back?¡± The healer said with hope.


    ¡°What are you saying!? You have the highest chances now! Spray them with holy magic and the job is done!¡± The assassin lost it.


    ¡°Relax people, the dungeon is only Cobalt rank, how bad could it be? Besides, we can always run.¡± The leader added his true thoughts.


    However¡­ They seemed to have completely forgotten about me, not like I cared. I also found it weird that they were freaking out about undead, they were truly a joke.


    ¡°Are you not worried?¡± Ari asked waiting for reassurance.


    ¡°No? Undead make me feel less concerned actually...¡± I kept my voice low so that they didn¡¯t hear me, Ari kind of sighed and let out a lighthearted quiet burst of laughter, I guess it was unexpected for her, but I could at least know she was at ease now.

 (Chpt. 70) Getting unasked exposure (4)

    Alice.


    Ari did not seem worried about the dungeon, which made me feel a lot more relaxed. However, the same could not be said about my fellow companions, or rather. The party I got forced into, unfortunately, they weren¡¯t in such a great state.


    ¡°Just go in!¡±


    ¡°How about you go in?! Miss-Assassin-I-am-great-at-my-job!¡±


    ¡°W-Wha¡­ WHAT DID YOU SAY?!¡± She grabbed the archer¡¯s collar.


    ¡°Guys, guys. Relax, weren¡¯t we going to do this together? We are returning, it¡¯s not like we can¡¯t deal with undead.¡± Roy tried to intervene, bringing reasoning.


    ¡°Right¡­¡±


    ¡°B-But, should we really do this?!¡± The mage asked with insecurity.


    ¡°Relax, everything will be okay.¡± Roy intervened once again.


    He took a deep breath as he looked at the mossy structure that was supposed to be a dungeon. Although to be fair, the entire place had an eerie atmosphere and smelled like death. I guess it wasn¡¯t so pleasant, for some reason the smell did not bother me that much. I guess it was because the smell was rather familiar, it was the exact same smell as the dungeons in the game. So there was that.


    ¡°Let us go!¡± Roy exclaimed as he ventured into the dungeon.


    ¡°Yeah!¡± the archer exclaimed as he threw a triumphant fist into the air. The assassin wordlessly nodded and the healer trembled.


    ¡°Y-Yeah¡­¡± She finally cried her reply and unsteadily made her way inside.


    ¡°I guess they forgot about us, huh¡­¡± Ari casually mentioned.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ I mean, I guess it¡¯s fine. More importantly.¡± I paused and looked at Ari in the eyes. ¡°Are you sure you can go inside, it¡¯s going to be dangerous.¡± I could always just summon Fifi and force, I mean, convince him to guard Ari outside.


    ¡°Yeah, don¡¯t worry about it. As long as you are fine I am fine.¡± She sounded confident about it, so I hesitantly nodded. Truthfully I did not expect it to be an undead dungeon, they weren¡¯t hard, but I was worried about Ari. They normally carry some real bad miasma that¡¯s bad for one¡¯s general being, hopefully, the clothes I gave Ari can block that out.


    ¡°Ari, you know about undead dungeons?¡± I asked again.


    ¡°You mean the miasma?¡± I nodded. ¡°Ah, don¡¯t worry about it.¡± She didn¡¯t seem to care yet again, so I sighed in defeat and started walking into the dungeon, with hesitation to say the least. I paused just a few steps into the dungeon, it had stairs leading down immediately, I didn''t even make it to the stairs.


    ¡°A-Are you sure?¡±


    ¡°Yea¡­¡± Ari confirmed yet again. I sighed and continued walking with defeat, I felt like I was worrying too much. The insides were dark and oddly wet, Ari did not seem to be bothered by the smell so there was that.


    I looked around, the decayed moss eventually turned green, so I guess the atmosphere wasn¡¯t as grim. The stairs kept going on though, it went oddly deep. There was bio-luminescence generated by the moss, so it was weird. The moss wasn¡¯t entirely green either, some of it was green and some of it was just dead, the bricks were still black and dark. So it gave the feeling of being in a hidden passageway of sorts, it was pretty and captivating.


    Ari and I continued absentmindedly descending through the passageway, it took a few minutes, there was no sign of the party nor the deadly undead mist that there was supposed to be, which made me close my eyes and sigh in relief. After a short pause, I opened them, and could not see much ahead, it was foggy, almost as if was covered by something. Upon going down a few more steps there it was; the mist.


    With a gulp, I stopped walking and looked back at Ari. She tilted her head and smiled at me, she continued walking herself, prompting me to reluctantly take the lead once again and descent into the mist. As I got closer to the end of the stairs I noticed the mist never really crossed my knee level, so I guess it wasn¡¯t a bad dungeon. I started hearing metal clashing a shouting. I guess they had engaged in battle.


    We stepped at the bottom of the stairs, I quickly glanced at Ari to see how she was doing with the mist in constant contact with her. She did not seem bothered by it at all, which made me sigh in relief once again. I personally could not feel the mist, but just looking at my status it had ¡°engaged¡± in ¡°battle mode¡± so I got the nifty stat boost from my gear. It brought back a bit of nostalgia being in such a familiar situation for the first time in forever. How long had I been in this world? Three-weeks? Honestly, I kind of forgot already, it still is like¡­ nothing¡­


    Ari and I took a few steps into the dungeon, it seemed to be like an underground city of sorts, well, rather than city it was more like a small town, all of the houses or rather. Destroyed houses were made of the same black brick and covered with the same fluorescent moss. I still found it captivating.


    We walked towards the noise that was coming from the center of the place. We walked into a mini plaza with a well in the middle. There they were surrounded by around fifty undead skeletons, they did not even have weapons. Yet¡­


    ¡°Kuhh...¡± They are formidable.


    ¡°O, earth that is connected to me, bring me life and sprawl into me, for I am, a tree.¡± What was with that chant¡­ The healer/mage started glowing green and touched all of her teammates, they also glowed green for a second. I guess it was a healing spell?


    The archer was firing some wet arrows to the undead, I noticed he pulled a bottle and literally bathed his quiver with it. I guess it was holy water? The warrior and assassin did the same, their blades were clad with holy water. I mean, did they really need holy water.


    The assassin rushed in and deftly evaded the arm swings of a skeleton by ducking, simultaneously severing the vertebrae of her foe, needless to say the poor skeleton stood no chance. I saw the pile of skeletons pile up slowly but surely. I heard some dirt move to my side, there it was. Yet another skeleton. Ari did not seem to care for it, for whatever reason.


    I pulled the dagger the dwarf made me and stabbed it in its forehead, and just like that. It died for good, it seriously wasn¡¯t that hard to deal with them, just stab them with a good weapon, I don¡¯t know¡­ Even a [Rare] grade item would be able to deal with such things. Yet for some reason, this party of adventurers were using holy water¡­ I mean, I get that Rare grade isn''t that common, but if you are obsidian you should be making big money right?


    I heard the battle stop and Roy came to my side. ¡°Looks like you are doing alright by yourself.¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± I awkwardly scratched my head. ¡®I could have probably done this dungeon in one-hour maximum. Yet these people took around ten minutes fighting some low tier skeletons.¡¯ Thanks to such thoughts I couldn¡¯t help but feel weird in such a position.


    Their party rested for a bit and finally stood up and started looking around. We were now in an empty-town-like place. There were no more undead anymore and the miasma was gone, my party on the other hand... They were clearly lost on where to go. Dungeons normally go up or down, this one was the later. Thing is, there was no clear way of going down.


    ¡°I thought this was supposed to be a dungeon.¡± The assassin said with disappointment.


    ¡°I mean, how is this not a dungeon? It went downstairs for quite a while.¡± The archer pointed the obvious.


    "Maybe we should go back?"


    "What are you saying, we took the dungeon quest. Let''s look for the way down!" Roy commanded and the party was split.


    Ari and I stood there next to the well. "Hey Yami, aren''t you going to look for the way down?"


    I tilted my head. "it''s right here though¡­"


    "What do you mean?"


    "The well is the way down¡­"


    "Oh." Ari looked down the well. "Looks possible... I guess? How did you think of it though?"


    "It''s obvious, town like dungeons either have a completely obvious tower with stairs in it or a well that has absolutely no water that just happens to have some stairs to go down."


    "Where are the stairs?" Ari asked with confusion. I gestured her to look inside the well once again and pointed to the strange gaps that it had in its interior walls, they were just laid in such a way that could be used as climbing points, however, they were so close together that they just simply worked as stairs that were inside the wall.


    "I never thought you would be so knowledgeable in dungeons," Ari bluntly said.


    "Well, dungeons are a great way to get exp."


    She sighed. "I think you are the only person in this world that could say such a thing."


    ¡°Maybe, but it¡¯s really not that hard to comprehend, just think outside the box a bit.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯d be surprised¡­¡± Ari suddenly found it relatable.


    ¡°Well, let us wait for them to figure it out, it shouldn¡¯t be that bad,¡± I commented as I sat down.


    I decided to share some food with Ari, which in this case were apples. Since I still had the apple barrel from Mirl, so it wasn¡¯t much of a problem. We munched on the apples without much worry, we heard some shouting from afar and a lot of running, but did not pay much attention to it. A great thing about dungeons was that enemies did not respawn once a room was cleared, in this case the town level counted as cleared. Or at least the center plaza did.


    A few minutes went by and some more running, they did not seem to be getting anywhere, but they should hopefully figure it out with time if there is only one way to go down it has to be the well, since it would be the only thing that goes down inside the room. It was simply put ?¡ª logic.


    Or so I thought, hours passed and there was no sign of them coming back to the center or making sense out of things. I sighed in defeat about the problem I ran into ?¡ª I could either call them and tell them it''s the well, which I honestly did not feel like doing simply because of annoyance, or I could clear the dungeon myself, but the problem with that option is that I would kill four people in the process. Collapsing is a big downside of a dungeon, sigh.


    ¡°Um, should we tell them?¡± Ari impatiently asked.


    ¡°Let us wait another hour, I am not that patient either¡­¡± I was certainly hoping they find it.


    * * *


    An hour went by, my legs trembled as I hopelessly smashed the ground with my fists, this was the worst outcome.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Yami?¡±


    ¡°They are¡­ noobs¡­¡± I muttered my truest thought yet, I had no problem dealing with new people, but weren¡¯t these people Obsidian rank?! Weren¡¯t these people an already established adventuring party?! Weren¡¯t they just returning? Shouldn¡¯t they be veterans at this!? They are just phonies!


    I felt deceived.


    ¡°Um¡­ Yami, are you okay?¡± Ari asked with concern.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ Listen Ari, let¡¯s never speak about what I am about to do.¡± I said with seriousness, she nodded with a gulp. I stood up.


    It was time to become the party leader for once in my life.


    ¡°COME HERE!¡± I shouted at the top of my lungs, it really wasn¡¯t my style to be rude, but I didn''t even want to be in such a scenario, nor deal with these people¡¯s antics. Worst case scenario I would end up insulting them, hopefully that didn¡¯t happen. Sadly becoming leader had a myriad of downsides.


    A few seconds went by and I heard hurried footsteps coming from all directions. The entire party gathered in front of me with curiosity and visible confusion.


    ¡°Alright, listen I will be taking over this since you people don¡¯t seem to have ever done a dungeon before.¡± I bluntly told them.


    ¡°W-What are you saying?! We lighting boar have done multiple dungeons!¡± The leader suddenly justified himself.


    ¡°Then where are the stairs down?¡±


    ¡°That is¡­¡± He clenched his teeth.


    ¡°We are in the process of finding them, duh¡­ You don¡¯t need to come with us if you are just going to get in the way, tch talk about spoiled kids.¡± The assassin said that as she turned around. I started trembling from rage. Did she seriously just discard me like that?


    Hearing that statement something broke inside me, I had heard similar words before, I always found them annoying, but them coming from someone that clearly had no idea what they were doing made me feel enraged.


    ¡°Alright, listen retards... We are going to do things my way, or I will clear the dungeon myself and you people can die from being buried underground.¡± I was done.


    ¡°Em, Yami are you okay?!¡± Ari asked with panic. I smiled at her and shook my head, I wasn¡¯t okay at all.


    ¡°Are you challenging me?!¡± The assassin exclaimed as she turned around with bloodlust.


    ¡°Wow, let¡¯s calm down for a second girls.¡± The archer intervened. "There is enough of me for both of you, heh."


    "You, come here."


    "What do you need, hot- Ough..." He dropped to the ground in pain. The assassin had punched him in the stomach.


    I sighed and decided to pretend as if nothing happened. ¡°The stairs are inside the well, let¡¯s go.¡± They looked utterly confused as I went down with Ari. Ari decided to ride on my back by hugging me tightly as I went down the well. Needless to say my mood was horrible.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 71) Getting unasked exposure (5)

    Alice.


    I stood at the bottom of the well as I waited for the adventurers to come down, it was a small time-window of tranquility and peace, although it wasn¡¯t much.


    ¡°Hey, um Yami, are you really okay?¡± Ari asked once again with concern.


    ¡°Just really mad right now, I am sorry Ari.¡± I weakly smiled at her as I heard the party fall down one by one.


    ¡°So what now?¡± The leader asked as he looked ahead, making me turn around and also do the same.


    A straight path with a wall at the end was the only visible thing, then it split into two pathways that were perpendicular to the hallway we were on. And of course, it was still covered in bioluminescent moss, although there was a lot less moss than before, but it was just as bright, so it was still possible to see without problems. The death-mist was also getting worse, Ari still looked unaffected and so did the party.


    ¡®Well, I wonder if they knew what this was? It was a labyrinth, yay¡­ No mob killing, just go around hugging a wall and hope to find the exit.¡¯ I turned around with the hope of the adventurers knowing what it was, unfortunately they were petrified and even tense, probably thinking it was a trap of sorts.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s a labyrinth.¡± I concisely explained.


    ¡°And how do you know that, smarty-pants?¡± The assassin inquired with hostility.


    ¡°How about you go and figure it out if you think I am wrong, I will be waiting for you right here.¡± I nonchalantly replied as I sat down on the ground. I wasn¡¯t any less altered than before, thinking about it, I normally would have backed off way too long ago, but not this time. I also felt slightly more confident seeing I was in a ¡°familiar¡± place, or rather, situation.


    The assassin was fuming but did not say anything as the leader pulled her aside to talk things out. I looked at my surroundings a bit more and then realized something.


    ¡°Wait, if it¡¯s like the game¡­¡± I accidentally blurted my realization, however, no one heard my quiet voice since it was completely overshadowed by the assassin shouting at the leader.


    With a new-found resolution and desire for knowledge I used my rather conveniently acquired skill on the dungeon walls, mostly because the dungeon was a single entity so I could inspect it. And¡­


    [Jermud¡¯s Grave, Natural Dungeon ?¡ª A-Rank]


    I smiled seeing at least there was something rather familiar, dungeons still had names and ranks, in this case it was A, which meant everything here was cannon-fodder, or at least I thought so. ¡®Now thinking about it, how did this thing make it to cobalt rank? I am pretty sure a gold rank adventurer could take care of it.¡¯


    Wait a second¡­ Weren¡¯t these people supposed to be obsidian rank? I mean, shouldn¡¯t they be the epitome of humanity or something, now, not that sure about it, but they should be at least level sixty, or even fifty. So if they were such a ¡°high¡± level, how could they not take care of normal skeletons.


    With my suspicion, I stood up and approached the leader.


    ¡°So, you are basically telling me I should just listen to her?¡±


    ¡°... Yes¡­¡± The leader sheepishly answered the heated assassin.


    ¡°How the F?¡ª¡±


    ¡°Umm¡­¡± I interrupted both of them in the middle of their heated moment, which made it kind of awkward.


    ¡°Do you need something?¡± The leader asked with an awkward smile as he tried to pretend that nothing almost happened.


    ¡°I was wondering if you guys were really obsidian¡­ I mean, you guys don''t know much about dungeons, and seem rather... Weak. ¡± The leader went wide-eyed and everyone went silent. I saw the assassin silently stand there as she shook her raging fist and looked at the ground, eventually she glanced at me with predatory eyes.


    ¡°We are really obsidian!¡± She was shouting at me as she approached me. ¡°We might be under-qualified, we might have struggled on the way here, but I can at least guarantee you our rank is legitimate! So¡­ F?¡ª¡±


    ¡°Okay that¡¯s enough.¡± The leader interrupted her again as she was about to swear for a second time. ¡°What she said is right, we might be under-qualified but we are Obsidian rank, so please guide us!¡±


    The leader humbly bowed, it took me aback a bit, since I did not expect him to do something like that in front of the entire group. Eventually the archer and the mage also did the same thing, everyone bowed except for the assassin, who was quietly muttering and cussing at an almost inaudible voice.


    ¡°Not like I have a choice... ¡± thankfully my mutter did not reach them.


    "Sure..." I quietly replied at them, I didn''t really want to make another drama again. " Just listen to me, we will be using the most common strategy to bypass the labyrinth.¡±


    ¡°Which is?¡± The assassin asked the obvious.


    ¡°Well, I would say blow up the walls, but I did not bring explosives, so the next best tactic is to choose a side of the wall and walk only on that side until you find the exit.¡±


    ¡°That is stupid!¡± She exclaimed her true thoughts. "What do you mean by blow up the walls in the first place?! Are you a lunatic?! The place would collapse on us! And yet you say to be so great just because you got lucky..."


    I looked at her with confusion. "Are you stupid?"


    "You... I will ki¡ª"


    ¡°Hush now, what Dark Shadow is saying makes sense, if you only go and follow a single side eventually you will reach the exit. Besides blowing up the walls is not a bad idea, considering that I''d be hard for the ceiling to collapse no matter what. It''s a dungeon after all.¡± The leader pulled his group aside and explained the logic behind the wall hugging to his group, since I guess that they weren¡¯t as brilliant.


    After they nodded we started walking, hugging the wall and telling people to not step on specific tiles of the floor, they were obviously a bit of a lighter color, meaning they were traps, There was no logic behind it, Ari and the group listened to my weird complaints. Well, almost all of them.


    The assassin rushed ahead of me. ¡°What you are saying is nonsense, look.¡± And she stepped on the grey colored tile, then as expected it dug itself into the ground and the walls started rattling. ¡°Maybe it actually made sense.¡± She instantly voiced her regret.


    "Sigh... Good job..." I sarcastically applauded.


    I kept my eyes sharp as I looked what was changing, the ground didn¡¯t move. The walls did not move towards us either, meaning we weren¡¯t going to get squished to death, then¡­ As I looked around I heard crunching and forceful gritting of rock, the wall to our left was moving and pushing itself away from us, effectively making the hallway more spacious and uncovering dirt to the sides¡­


    ¡°Zombies¡­¡± I mentioned what was about to happen.


    ¡°How did y?¡ª Ah...¡± The assassin was interrupted as her foot as grabbed by a rather decayed and pale hand, actually, it was dark and rotten. Not a nice sight to behold. With lightning-quick reflexes the assassin cut down the hand with her dagger, at least she was strong, makes me wonder why they struggled so much against the skeletons.


    ¡°Battle formation!¡± The leader shouted and the party gathered together against each other¡¯s back. And started using holy water (although as far as I knew zombies did not need such a thing), more importantly. I quickly realized something, Ari was missing.


    With slight panic, I disregarded that the zombies were going to die either way and pulled out my dagger, I wasn¡¯t really an assassin or a fighter class, however, the level and stat difference was just too big. In my haste I slashed one neck, with a single swipe, effectively decapitating the zombie.


    I quickened my pace, slashing my way through the small horde that appeared from the ground as I tried backtracking to find Ari, the adventurers seemed utterly confused by my quick pace, but there was no time to lose. Punching and kicking the zombies away from me as I walked I noticed something.


    There was a group of zombies ahead all seemingly going into a center. My heart stopped and throbbed at the same time, sweat rushed down my forehead and uneasiness crept over me. Without a second thought, I rushed into the horde and slashed without thinking about my technique, it really didn¡¯t matter.


    ¡°Yami!?¡± Ari panicked.


    ¡°I will be right there!¡± I hurriedly exclaimed as I made my way through the enormous amount of zombies that was in front of me, I became more and more anxious just imagining how much Ari had to be struggling, she didn¡¯t have a weapon and all she had for protection were the clothes I gave her, which could at least act as some kind of armor if the zombies attacked those rather than her actual skin, which just made me even more worried.


    After killing most zombies at inhuman speed, I panted as I looked up to see where Ari was, she was standing right there, unharmed. The floor next to her was clean of any corpse, all of the corpses were piled around her, almost as if she was protected. It made me feel at ease as I dropped to the ground for exhaustion, my arm and legs burned, my head hurt, but I felt peace of mind.


    ¡°Yami, Yami, Yami!¡± Ari called out for me in worry as I collapsed to the ground.


    ¡°I am glad you are safe¡­¡± Somehow, she was unharmed.


    ¡°B-But!¡± Tears welled in her eyes, but I didn¡¯t really care about what happened. ¡°I am sorry!¡± She exclaimed as she hugged me, even though I was sweaty¡­


    ¡°About?¡± I asked with confusion.


    ¡°I should¡¯ve told you, about me, about myself.¡± Eh¡­ ¡°Undead can¡¯t do anything to me, nor the miasma affects me.¡±


    ¡°Ah, that¡¯s good.¡± She probably had a blessing of sorts, they were incredibly rare but they would surge at random chance whenever your character was created, mine had none. So I never cared for them, they also had no impact on the end-game, so it didn¡¯t really matter.


    ¡°Are you not going to ask why?!¡± Ari was slightly frustrated as she cried out for me.


    ¡°Well, not really. All that matters is that you are safe.¡± She stopped for a second and hugged me tighter, I didn¡¯t really understand it.


    I heard hurried footsteps from behind, along with some unholy sounds of death.


    "Now what..." I muttered in defeat as I turned around and looked behind me. Accompanied with some panicked screaming.


    They didn''t ask for help but they were being pushed back by the zombies. Ha...


    "Back off Dark Shadow! They are too much for us!" Leader warned as he came over my way. Of course I sighed.


    "You people are sad..." I said my true thoughts.


    "Worry more about running rather than stating your opinion!" The edgy assassin told me.


    I sighed once again and in tiredness I made my decision. I was just going to get this over with.


    "What are you doing just standing there?!" The leader tried to move me.


    "Move." I pushed him away with a cold shoulder and walked towards the horde.


    "She lost it..."


    "Dark shadow!!! Nooo!!!"


    "Good"


    The entire party had different responses...


    I wasn''t experienced in battle, or at least as a front line, but it was just easier this way. I had made up my mind.


    One slash one kill, I evade the the swipes and bites, ducked and stabbed some knees, spun around and swiped at head level, taking another one with me.


    Before I knew it I had lost track of time as I only focused on the threat in front of me. My hands hurt, my arms felt tired and wiggly and my breathing was unstable.


    I dropped down on the ground,  I heard some footsteps behind me, yet there was only silence as they came to a stop.


    ¡°That was¡­ I am sorry for doubting you.¡± The leader directed himself at me with awe and respect. It made me wide-eyed seeing everyone was looking at me with bright eyes.


    ¡°A true obsidian rank¡­¡± The healer fearfully admitted.


    ¡°How is that true obsidian rank!? She has to be bordering the limits and almost going into Mithril!¡± Eh¡­


    ¡°I am sorry for before¡­ I will do my best to listen to you!¡± Even the assassin changed!


    The archer sat in front of me and looked at me with anticipation. ¡°So how did you do it?!¡±


    ¡°Do what?¡± I asked with curiosity as I started to feel thirsty.


    ¡°Get so strong!¡± Ah¡­


    ¡°It¡¯s complicated¡­¡± I decided to avoid the topic this time.


    ¡°But! At least tell us how you kept your weapon embedded with the holy element!¡±


    "Ha?" What was he going on about.


    ¡°Just leave her alone for the time being, we need her to recover.¡± The leader bluntly said and handed me a water pouch, he also handed Ari one, how convenient.


    * * *


    We spent around ten minutes sitting and eating things, they were incredibly uncomfortable for me as they did not stop asking questions, I ultimately managed to dodge most of them and only answer useless ones, somehow¡­


    We continued going through the labyrinth without any hiccups and finally made it to the stairs that were covered with black fog, well, it was miasma.


    ¡°Final floor¡­¡±

 (Chpt. 72) Walking down a skewed path (1)

    Alice.


    ?Aizen?


    ?Earlier that day?


    ¡®Kind of disappointing that neither Ari or Cecil knew what time it was¡­ Although I think it was obvious¡­ Sigh, I guess I might¡¯ve been asking too much, although I don¡¯t know¡­¡¯ I dropped my shoulders in disappointment as I walked down the azure cobblestone road, it was a bit of a weird experience trodding down the place without having anyone with me. I guess I just had never experienced it.


    I dwelled in my thoughts for a bit longer. Eventually sighing in disappointment once again, I found it truly unbelievable they did not know what I was talking about. However, there was still something nice about the whole of everything that happened. The robe I had been given was extremely nice, it was fluffy and accommodating, it was probably an item of sorts, although it didn¡¯t really compare with the original clothes Kuro gave me, but, the clothes with the robe truly made it a wonderful experience.


    ¡°It¡¯s kind of weird how I don¡¯t feel drained from the heat of wearing so much clothing¡­¡± I muttered my thoughts out loud. ¡°Well, whatever, better for me.¡± I kept walking without much second thought, passing by the houses without paying them much attention.


    And at last, I was finally standing before the academy, it was completely empty, I guess it was a perk of being incredibly early. I had been hearing some high-pitched sound in my ear for quite some time, but it was probably just my imagination. Without a second thought I started walking into the academy¡¯s plaza.


    ¡°I said wait!¡± Eh? Did I hear something? ¡°Wait pleasse¡­¡± Oh¡­


    I turned around with slight shock, only to see Cecil panting. I guess she had been calling for me? Although I don¡¯t remember hearing her, weird...  After a second I finally opened my mouth.


    ¡°Em, yes?¡±


    ¡°Why so early? I thought it was late and rushed here!¡± The first thing Cecil did was complain to me. Although it did not have much effect as I just shrugged without care.


    ¡°I mean, I can decide when I come and go, so can you, so why would you need to come here with me? Besides, you can always go back if it¡¯s too early.¡± Cecil¡¯s eyes widened I guess she did not expect me to reply like that.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine¡­¡± She sheepishly said as she walked past me and into the student building, as she had called it previously. She looked oddly sad, I wonder what I did? Was it my coldness?


    I did not pay much thought to what could¡¯ve caused it, and instead continued walking into the teacher building, or the building I met that crazy fanatic of the old man. And¡­ There she was. She groggily raised her head to see who it was, and as soon as we made eye contact she jolted.


    ¡°Y-Y-Y-You!¡±


    ¡°I?¡± I couldn¡¯t figure out why she was stuttering so much.


    ¡°W-What did you do to Lord Lynn!¡± Eh? ¡°He does not want to come out of his office, it must¡¯ve been your fault! After you came to visit yesterday he hasn¡¯t been the same!¡± Eh¡­


    ¡°I did not do anything though¡­¡± I thought for a second and started walking towards the elevator.


    ¡°Wh-what are you doing?!¡± The receptionist panicked as I boarded the elevator.


    ¡°I will give him a little therapy visit.¡± My reassuring words just made her panic grow, what could be so bad about what I was about to do? I was just going to check on him, that¡¯s all. I was one-hundred-percent not curious about what Ari had truly done.


    I reached the top of the building and left the elevator in a hurry, as soon as I stepped out of the elevator went down again, I guess I had plenty of time, considering said receptionist stuck me there forever. I leisurely made my way through the hallway and the carpet, seeing the occasional repeated plant here and there, and eventually I stood before the pair of doors before his office.


    ¡°Pardon the intrusion!¡± I slammed the door open and entered the room, it was completely dark, the big window that was normally behind the old man, was completely covered with a veil, I could not see that well.


    ¡°Who is it?¡± A grumpy voice asked. It took me aback a bit.


    ¡°It¡¯s me, your one and only.¡± I decided to play for a bit.


    ¡°One and only who?¡± He was clearly confused.


    ¡°The one and only that will see the truth!¡± I playfully said as I ignited fire in my hand, there he was. His eyes widened from astonishment as I saw him.


    ¡°You look ridiculous!¡± I started laughing, black eyes, cat whiskers, and even a little star on the cheek. Everything was just¡­ too silly for me not to laugh.


    ¡°Were you the one who did this?!¡± The old man furiously asked.


    ¡°Eh¡­ Who knows¡­¡± I said with a nonchalant voice. ¡°However, maybe if you weren¡¯t drinking nothing would¡¯ve happened.¡±


    ¡°It was in my office! Although who would¡¯ve thought I would get assaulted like that in my own office!¡± He grieved about his face some more. ¡°I have a conference!¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­ Just wear a mask or something¡­ Make an excuse, anything could happen after all. Say you were injured in the castle explosion from yesterday! I don¡¯t know, anything goes.¡± I firmly suggested.


    ¡°How did you¡­ Anyway, castle explosion or not, it¡¯s not something that sim?¡ª¡± He paused as he thought. ¡°Maybe it is.¡±


    ¡°You have something in mind?¡± I asked as he rummaged underneath his desk. Some time passed as he kept looking before finally looking excited, although the old man looked weird, to say the least. Black eyes, kind of like a panda, with whiskers and a star, except his eyes were all sparkly, so he looked silly.


    ¡°Found it~¡± he pleasantly informed me as he wore a mask. It was akin to a bird, it had a beak and such, it was also black. ¡°It¡¯s my battle mask, no one will say anything if I wear it since it¡¯s recognizable and I can be recognized.¡± Bluntly speaking I thought he looked retarded, he reminded me of Kuro trying to be inconspicuous with wearing all black.


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± I lied through my teeth seeing I did not want to bother with it anymore.


    ¡°So why are you here?¡± The old man finally caught on what I wanted.


    ¡°Do you not see?¡± I spun around like a princess.


    ¡°Your black robe?¡± He approached me and examined it. ¡°Looks to be real.¡±


    ¡°Well, of course, it¡¯s real!¡± I grumbled in annoyance, how could dare he doubt me?!


    ¡°Hmm¡­ so what is it that you want? Miss Royal mage?¡± He sat back down on his chair.


    ¡°Well, I said it yesterday but you were probably too drunk to remember. I came to replace the elf.¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± He broke into a smile. ¡°I had forgotten, at first I was against the idea, but I would rather not be the one needing to replace since we actually don¡¯t have replacement teachers¡­ Long story¡­¡± He awkwardly scratched his neck. ¡°Anyway, yeah. At least, for now, I will allow it.¡±


    ¡°Yay¡­¡± I emotionlessly expressed my joy. ¡°So, where do I go?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, let¡¯s see¡­¡± He looked around his papers and pulled out a list. Browsing through it he finally recognized where and showed me the list. ¡°Class 303, is your class.¡±


    ¡°Sounds good,¡± I recalled which room was which, this one was almost right next to Cecil¡¯s, which I did not mind. I started leaving the room.


    ¡°Where are you going?¡± He asked with confusion.


    ¡°The classroom?¡± I mentioned the obvious. He silently pointed at the corner, it had a big magic circle with things I did not understand.


    ¡°Just stand there, give it mana and think about number 303. There are a few other circles but this is my personal one, you are using this one for the special occasion.¡±


    ¡°I see¡­¡± I thought for a second. ¡°By the way, what type of magic does this thing use?¡± I pointed at the circle with curiosity.


    ¡°I wish I knew the answer¡­¡± He plopped down on his chair. ¡°The founder of the academy made these circles over three hundred years ago, no one really knows what magic he used, and replicating them has yielded no results, you could say they are an artifact of a lost age, or just magic of the lost age.¡±


    ¡°Lost age?¡± I asked with confusion.


    ¡°It¡¯s a long story, I guess they no longer teach it to kids huh?¡± He frowned ever so slightly, although I did look like a child so I guess I couldn¡¯t blame him. ¡°Well, it was basically an age in which humanity was always advancing, legends talked about the limits of the status being reached, the impossible being possible.¡± He was getting excited. ¡°Well¡­ I guess it sounds silly now, seeing the current strong people probably would not be able to compete with the average adventurer in that time.¡± Eh¡­


    I felt oddly happy hearing him. ¡°I see, see you.¡± I stepped on the plate as I thought of the number. ¡°By the way, there are people currently alive that have reached the limits.¡± I smiled.


    ¡°Wha?¡ª¡° And teleported.


    I chuckled to myself in the now dark room I was in, I guess there was a world out there to explore wasn¡¯t there. It¡¯s a whole body of rock to be explored, almost endlessly. Well, I¡¯d probably die before I find every secret, but at least knowing such a legend exists brings me inspiration, legends could be true or false after all. But they always had a reason to exist.


    I noticed a light coming at the bottom of my feet, I quickly realized I was standing before a door. I heard some chatter right outside, I arrived at the conclusion that I was at the infamous teacher door. With resolution, I opened the door and walked into the light. I was blinded for a second as I walked towards the lectern. Well, it was more of a desk rather than a pedestal of sorts.


    I arrived behind it and looked up, a bunch of unfamiliar kids that seemed to be in their teenage years met my gaze. Some of them looked at me with confusion, others with pity and others with hopefulness, it was a weird experience, I also felt like they were looking down on me due to the classroom layout. I have to work on that¡­


    ¡°Um, are you lost?¡± A girl in the front row asked with kindness. Although I simply tilted my head with confusion.


    ¡°I am your teacher.¡±


    ¡°¡±¡±EHHH¡±¡±¡± The classroom immediately lost it and broke into chatter and rumor spreading as soon as I made my statement. Some of them looked lost and were even silently pleading to some unknown god to be able to continue their magic studies.


    ¡°Anyway, what would you kids want to know? Not really sure about what to teach since I kinda just got thrown into it¡­¡± Well, I did not mention that I was the one that threw myself in, but I digress.


    The entire class went silent for a second and quickly became confused.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you the teacher? Do something¡­¡±


    ¡°Sending a kid really isn¡¯t the best, maybe I am wasting my time.¡± Talk about judgemental.


    ¡°I CHALLENGE YOU TO A DUEL!¡± An ear-piercing voice came from the back. I looked for the source, there he was, a kid that was probably around fifteen years old was looking down on me as he stood on a desk, he got down and proceeded to trod down to the front and stand before me.


    ¡°Scared?¡± He asked with a mocking tone.


    I immediately began laughing. ¡°First, why should I duel you? Second, it¡¯s going to end badly for you.¡±


    ¡°As stated by school policy, any student is free to attack the teacher and try to take their spot, although the student can be likewise injured and even outright killed. Although I don¡¯t think we will go that far. We are not in medieval times anymore. Don¡¯t you agree? T-e-a-c-h-e-r.¡±


    "Ha... that''s a dumb rule... If students died in it, I assume it would''ve been removed already." He stiffened.


    "Just because it''s a rule from over 300 years ago it doesn''t mean it''s any less valid!" They started cheering him.


    So it starts like this, first things first someone mocks me... How infuriating... I started violently shaking my fist in rage.


    ¡°Oh, looks like I went too fa?¡ª¡±


    ¡°I wish I had killed the elf right then and there...¡± I hatefully voiced out my resentment, I wish I had known that the school had such a dumb policy. ¡°Fine kid, I accept. I will use only a single spell, of course, I will let you attack first.¡±


    A lot of the kids looked worried, most of the eyes seemed fixated on me though. Looks like I had to establish my place, through my own means¡­ Even if it meant being a torturer instead of a teacher.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 73) Walking down a skewed path (2)

    Alice.


    I looked around some more, the astonishment was not gone, at even you could say they were mostly frozen. I couldn¡¯t help but tilt my head in confusion.


    ¡°So?¡± The kid that had been standing in front of me took a step back.


    ¡°What do you mean so?! You are asking me to attack you!¡± I nodded as if it was obvious. ¡°Aren¡¯t you a substitute teacher?¡±


    ¡°Well, I am a teacher, although I don¡¯t know how long I will stay here for¡­ I guess I am?¡± I doubted myself, I didn¡¯t really plan to live in the capital, it seemed boring unless of course, I messed with the king, then I was all for it.


    ¡°Then, why aren¡¯t you declining the duel!¡± The kid exclaimed, he looked worried.


    ¡°What do you mean? Besides, I think I am forced to accept. Could it be¡­¡± I got closer to him. ¡°Are you scared?¡±


    ¡°The one scared should be you¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± What was he even talking about?


    ¡°Look at our robes.¡± He took a weird sense of pride as he said that, I eyed the classroom and they were all wearing some magenta colored robe, it looked oddly fancy.


    ¡°Aha, so, what am I looking at?¡± Really did not understand the robe thing.


    ¡°It means everyone in this entire class is at least an archmage!¡± He exclaimed in annoyance.


    ¡°Oh¡­ Well, I mean if you can tell robes apart. Then look at mine.¡±


    ¡°What do you even ex?¡ª¡± He froze. ¡°A court mage¡­ Y-You know that faking such a status can get you killed?!¡±


    ¡°Yes yes, now I accepted your pitiful duel request, do you want to keep going?¡± He gulped.


    ¡°Seeing I no longer need to worry about you, yes¡­¡± He still looked insecure.


    Well, since things are getting derailed already might as well try to "teach" something, although it''s all I can do to try to get something out of the situation.


    ¡°Alright kids, the first lesson of the day, don¡¯t underestimate your opponent, unless you are absolutely sure they stand no chance.¡± I decided to proceed with my teachings, I had no idea what I was doing, but showing off was always nice.


    ¡°So, where is the duel taking place?¡±


    I smiled. ¡°Here, right here right now, don¡¯t worry about collateral damage, the classroom should be fine, and well, as far as other mages are concerned.¡± I looked at the entire class. ¡°They are archmages no? They should survive.¡± They suddenly turned pale, and some of them hurriedly stood up and went to the back, others remained seated with nervousness.


    ¡°Fine then!¡± The kid yelled in annoyance, he started muttering to himself, I guess that was his way of casting. It went for more time than I thought it would, so I took a second.


    ¡°If they cast for so long you can just kill them, of course, I won¡¯t do anything about it because I am not worried about it!¡± I started laughing, more kids turned pale.


    ¡°Don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t warn you¡­¡± He commented to me as he finished. [DYSPHORIA!] He shouted at the top of his lungs, I guess that was the spell. Something about being unhappy? I waited for something to happen but did not see anything, yet his smirk could not be erased.


    ¡°Just you wait...  The spell consumes my mana for as long as I keep feeding it, I hope you apologize after this.¡±


    ¡°Thanks for the lecture¡­¡± I awkwardly said as I looked around, although I saw nothing. The students were pale and even praying for their lives though.


    RUMBLEE!


    The entire building started to violently shake, I slightly panicked, I said the classroom would be okay, not some super old building that¡¯s god-knows-how-old!


    ¡°Enough for now¡­ [Ruin]!¡± I pointed my finger at the kid and he collapsed as he foamed from his mouth. ¡°Looks like I overdid it¡­¡± The building slowly stopped shaking.


    I sighed in relief and pointed at the kids on top of the classroom, they backed into the wall with fear. ¡°Take him somewhere where he can get healed!¡±


    ¡°B-But!¡±


    ¡°No buts, take him or he dies.¡± With a gulp, a kid came running down and took him outside the classroom. It was also the same one that tried to object, his friend I suppose.


    ¡°That concludes the duel, does anyone else want to try?¡± I asked with a smirk, and as expected everyone violently shook their heads. ¡°Very well, now, we will start the actual class. I have no idea what to teach you people, but I guess we can figure that out, right?¡±


    ¡°¡±... Y-Yes¡­¡±¡± The class nervously answered.


    I got to thinking. ¡°Well, before we start does anyone have any questions?¡±


    The entire class raised their hand. ¡°Eh¡­ I guess, first one to speak, you.¡± I pointed towards a random kid. He looked a bit shy and frail, even pale, was he undead or something?


    ¡°Um¡­ What was the spell you used?¡±


    I smiled. ¡°It¡¯s Ruin, it has a lot of effects and side effects, however, it basically disrupts the mana of a target, causing something akin to a heart attack¡­ Or that¡¯s the idea, it is still an experimental spell after all¡­¡± I invented the last part trying to avoid mentioning the sudden death chance of it¡­


    A lot of the classroom was frozen and the kid seemed somewhat excited by my answer.


    ¡°W-Was it created by you?!¡± Waa, he was a lot more cheerful now. I awkwardly nodded.


    ¡°Next.¡±


    ¡°Bu?¡ª¡±


    ¡°What type of spell was it?!¡± These kids were really wanting to learn. I sighed hearing the girl¡¯s question, seeing it was neutral I couldn¡¯t quite say it was neutral, but how is neutral created? Ah right¡­


    ¡°All archetypes¡­ Next¡­¡± I avoided her question, although every time I went through a kid I saw multiple hands come down, so I guess that solved a lot of the questions at once.


    ¡°Um¡­ How did you cast a complicated spell that fast?¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­ We can make that the first lesson, although it takes years of practice to master it like that.¡± I said with pride.


    ¡°How many years did it take you?!¡± He asked with enthusiasm.


    ¡°You really don¡¯t want to know¡­¡± I declined the question with a bitter smile.


    As soon as I declined all the kids in the room threw the ¡°eh¡­¡± disappointment sound, I guess it was to be expected. Although it was weird seeing them so knowledge-hungry, I mean, weren¡¯t they in disbelief and even in horror a few minutes ago?


    I turned around and faced the front of the classroom, or back depending on how you looked at it. It had one of those nice mana magic boards. I decided to take a look at the things I had to work with, a desk with a notebook and a quill with ink, I guess that was it. And of course, a chair.


    I decided to take a seat on the chair.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you kids scared of me?¡± I asked with confusion, they clearly saw me use a single spell on my challenger and making him faint with it.


    ¡°¡±Yes¡­¡±¡± A lot of the class nodded. ¡°But, I have faith that you are a great teacher.¡± A girl added, making the class nod in unison. It was weird. Were these people students or some type of automated doll? I mean I kind of expected more resistance or something, although I am sure they are more interested in my knowledge rather than me.


    ¡°I see, well¡­ I am bored anyway, so I guess we can do some teaching.¡± They looked at me with sparkly eyes, waa¡­ I wasn¡¯t used to so much attention, although I guess I had kind of asked for it.


    I stood before the board, and at last attempted to teach something.


    ¡°Alright, sla?¡ª kids, what are the steps of a magic spell.¡±


    ¡°¡±Chant.¡±¡± Eh¡­


    ¡°Anything else?¡±


    ¡°Umm¡­ Fire?¡± A doubting voice came from behind me.


    ¡°That is¡­¡± I paused in disbelief, I looked back at them and they were all so proud of themselves for answering what they thought was correct, what had happened? ¡°That is¡­ wrong¡­¡± My cold voice descended on them like needles.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°Have any of you asked yourselves why you need mana manipulation to cast a spell?¡± I mean, I didn¡¯t really know the actual theory behind it either. But, hey, maybe I could figure out something on my own about this. As I thought to myself they shook their head.


    ¡°Well, as we know we can manipulate mana willingly, and can channel it through our words by chanting.¡± They nodded. ¡°What if you skip the chanting?¡±


    ¡°Nothing happens.¡± Someone coldly said to my side.


    ¡°Correc?¡ª Eh?¡± The old man was standing next to me as he wore his stupid mask.


    ¡°We need to talk.¡± He whispered into my ear as he exited the room, making me follow behind him. To the top of the classroom.


    ¡°Looks like the lessons will have to wait.¡± I waved farewell at my dear students that I taught for a few minutes, a lot of them seemed sad and disappointed, I guess I was the greatest teacher they ever had. Umu.


    We walked for a bit until we reached a door, prompting me to go inside, he took his mask. It was a classroom but this one was empty. He had a plate on his robe that read ¡°Lynn¡± I guess that was that.


    ¡°Do you know why I brought you here?¡±


    ¡°Not really, I mean I did fire a spell at a student, is it that?¡±


    ¡°Did your spell include demolishing the school?!¡± He asked with frustration.


    ¡°No? That was his, which is why I demolished the student so it did not cause collateral damage!¡± I righteously fought back.


    ¡°Tch, no more of your dumb experiments, I saw your way of teaching, you clearly have no idea how to do it!¡± Eh¡­


    ¡°Well, I guess?¡± I tilted my head. ¡°You can always go back to giving classes with the marker on your face.¡± He stopped.


    ¡°Fine¡­ you win this time, just no more fighting the students or making them fight amongst each other¡­¡± Eh, that sounded fun¡­ What about a student colosseum?


    ¡°Yes¡­¡± He shooed me away afterward.


    * * *


    ¡°Alright, we may continue.¡± I entered the classroom. The students jolted from their seats and looked at me, it was weird but whatever. I made my way down the stairs and got to the board.


    ¡°So, nothing happens. We know that, however, what does a chant do? Shape the spell, but through what?¡± I asked, the students seemed excited but at the same time incredibly puzzled. Until one of them raised their hand.


    ¡°Through mana?¡± He looked pretty sure about his answer, as I saw him smile waiting for some praise or something.


    ¡°Kind of, partially right.¡± He dropped his shoulders in defeat. ¡°We give a meaning to our mana, in a way we can influence how it acts through our own will, however, it¡¯s kind of impossible to make a spell simply by controlling mana, although¡­ Something interesting can happen¡­¡± I smiled to myself recalling the blissful explosion. ¡°Anyway if we give a meaning to our mana, how about we give a meaning to our spell name, what if we imagine how the spell truly works and relate that to the name? Wouldn¡¯t that achieve the same effect as a chant?¡± Looks like I arrived at something.


    The class sheepishly nodded. ¡°Well, that is in theory on how to make a chant a single word, you give the word a chant-like meaning to you, of course, it can be hard to do seeing you have to completely know how the effects of a spell works.¡± Which is why it took forever to learn all of my spells that way¡­ I took a seat as the kids thought to themselves.


    ¡°Amazing¡­¡±


    ¡°How could she know all of this?¡±


    ¡°Is she really a kid? No, she is something else¡­¡±


    ¡°She is the best teacher¡­¡±


    I kept hearing random songs of praise, I mean, I didn¡¯t think I was that great at teaching, was knowledge really that dead here? I was hoping to see new heights of magic, not to see it become stale, what a disappointment. Looks like the venture of teaching will not last long, well student colosseum isn''t happening, so there isn''t much of a point.

 (Chpt. 74) Walking down a skewed path (3)

    Alice.


    I stood there thinking, the teaching experience was kind of boring so far, the kids praised me for no real reason, they were ignorant and completely dumb, I didn¡¯t know how I really felt about it. It was an utter disappointment.


    ¡°T-Teacher could you teach me a new magic spell?¡±


    I tilted my head. ¡°Teach?¡± I paused. ¡°Things have truly degraded huh¡­¡± I muttered my own thoughts to myself. ¡°How about you make your own magic spell?¡±


    ¡°¡±T-That¡¯s impossible!¡±¡± The students roared in unison.


    Hearing their nonsense I facepalmed, teaching was not for me, I was excited for bossing kids around but it was more of a getting bossed around or helping them out, and frankly I did not feel like I should resort to tyranny like the elf. I sighed in defeat.


    ¡°Well, you all fail then! I quit!¡± I proudly informed them as I walked into the teacher door and closed it behind me. ¡°Ah¡­ the blissful silen?¡ª¡±


    ¡°What do you mean quit?!¡±


    ¡°I have so much left to learn!¡±


    ¡°I-I need to know her secrets!¡±


    Or so I thought, these people were truly crazy. Before they could open the door I thought about the old man¡¯s room and with a bit of mana, it teleported me there, almost instantly. It was truly interesting how the thing worked.


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± The old man let out a stupid gasp as he saw me show up out of nowhere.


    ¡°What do you mean, oh?¡± I sighed. ¡°By the way, those kids are crazy.¡±


    ¡°Ha?¡± He was taken aback. ¡°You seem like the crazy one to me, showing up out of nowhere, challenging the elf teacher I don¡¯t know the name of, and then trying to replace him!¡± Eh¡­


    ¡°Anyway, what¡¯s with those kids, as soon as they find something new they become like vampires searching for blood¡­¡± I posed my counterargument, I couldn¡¯t care if I was in the wrong, I wasn¡¯t going to give away my knowledge if they were just going to use me as a tool to propel themselves to further heights. Which made complete sense, but still!


    ¡°Well, of course, they¡¯d do that, that class is the top!¡± He paused in excitement. ¡°If they can become a top tier archmage maybe they can get a high standing in the church of the seven faiths!¡± Eh¡­ ¡°You know how influential the church is, some people desire fame, some money, some just want to be special. That¡¯s just how it is.¡±


    ¡°It explains a lot then¡­¡± I paused. ¡°So what about you?¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± He blushed. ¡°Well, I have other things on the side that are not allowed by the church.¡± Eh, don¡¯t tell me¡­ He is blushing, it¡¯s normally meant for any type of relationship, and what¡¯s not allowed by the church¡­


    ¡°Do you like beastkins?¡±


    He froze¡­ ¡°I-I never said that! H-How could I do something so filthy!¡± Waa, his reaction made it more than obvious.


    ¡°So you like them¡­ Oh well, who cares.¡± I shrugged, I just found it funny to tease him for a second, however, the old man did not seem to find it funny seeing he had an agape mouth.


    ¡°You know, I thought you came from the church, so I thought that was my life sentence right there¡­¡± He scratched his neck. ¡°Truth is, I kind of thought you were some sort of agent of the church, since well¡­ you are too powerful for your age, although something was weird, and this confirms it!¡± What confirms it? ¡°You don¡¯t mind beastkins or seem to care about the church, even though they are the most influential organization across the continent. So¡­ You must be¡­¡±


    ¡°I must be?¡±


    ¡°The hero!¡± Another retard¡­


    ¡°And you are also crazy¡­ How could someone that has ki?¡ª put to rest thousands of uh¡­ things be the hero?¡± I struggled to not make it super obvious. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that be the demon lord in any case? Besides, I am excluded from that category anyway, it¡¯s impossible for me. Because I?¡ª¡± I hurriedly paused as I gave away too much information, I just did not like being bunched up with random things of fate and things that made no real sense.


    ¡°Not from that category¡­¡± He muttered trying to get somewhere, oh no¡­ ¡°Okay I give up, you make no sense.¡± Ah. ¡°Although I am interested to hear where you got the information you told me earlier.¡±


    I tilted my head in confusion. ¡°What information?¡±


    ¡°People who have reached the limits¡­¡± Oh¡­


    ¡°Well, what can I say, it¡¯s a secret¡­¡± I averted my gaze.


    ¡°Oh, really? Then I guess I should call the church. You raise plenty of red-flags, you know?¡±


    I glared daggers at him. ¡°So, is this your true self?¡± Surprisingly, the old man backed into his seat and gave me a pleading gaze and slight teary eyes.


    ¡°I just want information, there is nothing that I care more about than knowledge¡­ Although just judging by the feeling of death I am feeling, you must be one of them...¡± Looks like I had made a mistake. I froze for a second, which made the old man smile. ¡°I knew it the moment you mentioned it! Looks like I win!¡± I did not understand his reasoning, defeated I occupied a chair in front of his desk.


    ¡°So now that you know, what? Church time?¡± I asked with a slightly amused voice.


    ¡°No, that would be a waste, I want to know how to reach the limit!¡± He sounded like a young person all over again, I guess the excitement was getting to his head.


    ¡°There is no secret to it, just kill monsters endlessly and it will happen eventually¡­¡± He got to thinking and reluctantly opened his mouth.


    ¡°But, you did it with people no? I can just tell from the aura you gave me just moments before, you are no stranger to threatening.¡± Well, things go out the window, I suppose.


    ¡°Hunt or be hunted. Not going to say more, you are stepping on thin ice old man!" Truthfully, I wanted to forget about all the things I did. "I just came to relax from your crazy students and probably quit, not that interested in answering an interview here...¡± I tiredly said.


    ¡°If that¡¯s how it is, I won¡¯t pursue further, you already brought plenty of joy to my boring life. And as far as the students go, if you really dislike it so much, feel free to leave at any time, we aren¡¯t really paying you and the only teacher that would handle them was the elf, he kind of enjoyed how masochi?¡ª I mean, how cooperative they were¡­¡± ¡­ Don¡¯t say anything¡­


    I stood up and started walking towards the door. ¡°If that¡¯s how it is, I am leaving¡­ Tell Cecil I will give her private lessons whenever you see her.¡±


    ¡°... Sure¡­¡± He was slightly confused by my request.


    ¡°The mask does not suit you.¡± I pointed with a wry smile at the mask he had been wearing the entire time. ¡°Maybe find a magic eraser or something.¡± He did not say anything but I could tell he wanted to argue. Without thinking about it I left the room through the normal door.


    And¡­


    Immediately collapsed on the wall next to the door as I painfully held my head.


    ¡®I¡­ screwed up¡­¡¯ I regretfully spoke to myself. ¡®Giving away such information, and only gaining some stupid reason to why the students were crazy, it was the church, boohoo who would¡¯ve thought. And yet another person knows of my strength, killing him won¡¯t do good, leaving him alone might not do harm or might harm¡­ what a problem¡­¡¯ I grieved over my mistake for minutes, spinning the same thought on my head trying to make up a solution, yet I arrived at nothing.


    ¡®Sigh, I wonder what will I be doing now? The capital seems plenty boring, or¡­ wait... shouldn¡¯t there be a church somewhere?!¡¯ I split into a grin having a new adventure to pursue, maybe it wasn¡¯t the best way of going about things, but I sure would have some extra fun.


    With a new-found decision, I stood up with a better mood and made my way to the unholy thing that called itself an elevator. Slowly but surely it moved down as instructed by my command, it also had a slight melodious yet repetitive ring that I did not notice, it was calming but it got annoying after the first minute or so.


    After going down through the cage of hell and sort of melodious-terri-bad tone it finally opened with a pleasant ding. And then I felt an odd sense of hostility as I walked out, and sure enough, the receptionist was staring me down as if she was going to attack me any second.


    ¡°Youuu¡­ What did you do?!¡±


    ¡°I have not done anything, leave me alone already you crazy wench!¡± I frankly wasn¡¯t going to deal with her so I just flat out insulted her and left, unexpectedly she froze for a second giving me the chance to actually escape.


    I stood on the school¡¯s plaza and decided to think about where I could get information about the church, after around a second I remembered something. I had better things to do!


    * * *


    I slammed the door. ¡°Heeey, remember how I saved your life?¡±


    ¡°Oh no¡­¡± He paused with fear as he stopped doing documents, long time no see Dan.

 (Chpt. 75) Making a name for myself (1)

    Alice.


    ¡°Final floor¡­¡± I muttered with slight excitement and a bit of anxiousness, it was something that I hadn¡¯t done in quite a while after all.


    ¡°Umm, maybe we should turn back?¡± The healer/mage was nervously shaking for some reason. ¡°That miasma does not seem very friendly, or safe¡­¡±


    ¡°I think the strongest here should decide.¡±


    ¡°Agreed¡­¡±


    And like that, everyone was looking at me. Making me freeze for a second and reconsider, I was completely sure I wanted to go in, but if so many people depended on me then¡­ It was a good idea to re-evaluate the situation. And so I got to thinking.


    ¡®Natural undead dungeon¡­ It has had zombies and skeletons, it¡¯s A-rank¡­ I am basically the only person that can do absolutely anything in this party, worst case scenario I summon Fifi, I get the loot¡­ Which means¡­¡¯


    ¡°Hehehe¡­~¡± Oops, looks like I drooled thinking about crafting materials.


    ¡°Umm, are you okay?¡± The leader asked with concern.


    ¡°Yami, um¡­ please tell me you are not thinking abo?¡ª¡±


    ¡°We can do this, it¡¯s just a puny A-rank boss!¡± And so I led the frontal-assault into the stairs, albeit the party was slightly reluctant to even touch the miasma, although being fair it looked like dark fog that had negative amount of visibility.


    Without thinking twice about it, I held Ari¡¯s hand and went into the stairs, she seemed slightly reluctant but became a lot more relaxed once she realized the miasma was harmless to her, well¡­ If she had a blessing as I thought she did, the dungeon we were in wouldn¡¯t really affect her, it would take an SS-rank one at least, and well¡­ This world and ranks don¡¯t go together¡­


    I turned around not hearing the footsteps behind me.


    ¡°Is something wrong?¡± I asked with slight concern as I tilted my head. The entire party was standing at the top of the stairs, looking with fear and despair.


    ¡°H-How¡­¡±


    ¡°S-She is¡­ in the miasma¡­¡±


    ¡°T-T-T¡­¡± The healer couldn¡¯t speak.


    All of them were shaking uncontrollably but one of them, the leader, kind of had forgotten his name already. Never really addressed him after all. He was looking down with cold eyes and a visibly upset expression.


    ¡°I am sorry, but we cannot go down. That miasma is too much for us to handle, it gives you shivers, makes you feel like you are going to die¡­ Hallucinations¡­ I can¡¯t, none of us can¡¯t. I am sorry Dark Shadow¡­ I don¡¯t know how you can do it¡­¡± He was oddly reasonable considering he described his experience. Actually¡­ I noticed his hands and feet were uncontrollably shaking, qualities of a leader I suppose.


    ¡°I get it¡­ I will vanquish the evil that lies below and get us out of here.¡± I smiled at him with my purest and most genuine smile I could muster, which made him relax his shoulders and wave at me with a bit of disappointment on his face.


    We walked down, Ari had a confused expression.


    ¡°How come you are not affected¡­ Wait, forget that! Do you even care for the evil that lies at the bottom or them for that matter! Why would you lie to them like that!¡± Ari protested at me as we walked down.


    ¡°Eh, I mean¡­ I don¡¯t care about evil, but like¡­ I want more potential items¡­ Besides, I never agreed to this¡­ Also, if they stay there, they won¡¯t die. So, there is that.¡± I casually informed Ari with a bit of regret.


    ¡°B-But¡­ I just did not think you could be so selfish¡­¡± Eh¡­


    ¡°I-I mean¡­ I kind of dragged us to the capital in a quest for finding a new metal which so far there is no sign of¡­¡± Metal¡­ where are you¡­


    ¡°... I suppose¡­¡± Ari seemed to still be upset. I did not know what was wrong with her.


    ¡°Are you upset because I did not care about your ¡®secret¡¯?¡±


    ¡°N-no¡­ I-I am happy¡­ it¡¯s just that¡­ I expected more¡­¡± Ehhh¡­


    ¡°I mean, I don¡¯t know if I was right, but I have seen blessings before¡­ I don¡¯t know what yours is, but I know what a blessing is¡­¡± I clumsily told her what I knew.


    ¡°I-It¡¯s a blessing¡­¡± She started fidgeting. ¡°B-But blessings are supposed to be super rare and... well¡­ b-bound to the church¡­¡±


    ¡°Hmhm, I see¡­¡± I thought for a second. ¡°Well, church or whatever. Blessings can be rare, but if I know about it, I don¡¯t see the issue.  And besides, you are with me now. So, what church?¡±


    ¡°So that¡¯s how it was¡­¡± Ari muttered with a smile, although it quickly become slightly crooked. ¡°Do you not care about it being from the church? Y-you¡¯re a beastkin after all¡­¡±


    ¡°I hardly con?¡ª No I don¡¯t care¡­¡± I couldn¡¯t really mention her that I kept forgetting my own race after all¡­


    After talking to Ari she seemed to be a lot more at ease for whatever reason. As if a weight had been taken off her, however, she quickly became worried to herself as she muttered a lot of ¡®if¡¯s¡¯ that trailed into silent mutters. I did not really understand it, and talking to her about it did not seem like a good idea.


    A few more silent steps and we were finally at the bottom of the stairs, it looked pretty empty as I looked around, the darkened floor and the miasma that did not let me see very far, the little illumination made by the moss on the walls. I guess it was kind of a disappointing boss battle.


    I took a step forward before I felt a strong tug on my hand, it was Ari. I tilted my head wondering what caused her to do so, I saw her sheepishly raise her finger and point forward. The miasma ever-so-slowly started to clear to the sides and sink.


    ¡°Eh¡­¡±


    We were in a huge dome inside the ground, it wasn¡¯t a squared room like the other places. No wonder we kept going down the stairs. The entire ceiling of the dome was covered with moss and it had some type of blue-fluorescent liquid leaking down like a waterfall. Following it, I saw it ended up going into an ever-flowing river that was quite literally floating over a miasma abyss. I couldn¡¯t help but tilt my head at the strange things I was seeing.


    I decided to recollect myself a bit and start to follow a different thing with my eyesight. I followed the new-found path that guided us forward, it went down like a ramp, doing a single zig-zag before it went straight and became a bridge; crossing across the pit of miasma and weird liquid. Then my eyes froze for a second before I hurriedly rubbed them, I must¡¯ve seen something wrong.


    It was a rock castle with spiked crenellations, and inclined towers, it looked like a warped and skewed castle of terror. It was an odd sight to behold. I also noticed that there were crystals around, giving a cozy green illumination to the castle walls. With a gulp I looked at the towering gate that stood from afar, this was a bit more realistic than what I expected.


    ¡°Are you sure about this?¡± Ari asked with slight worry.


    ¡°Y-Yea, it¡¯s just¡­ Nothing¡­¡± I couldn¡¯t tell her it was my first time experiencing something like this. Besides, even if this happened to be a super rare dungeon, the boss monster couldn¡¯t be past A rank.


    ¡°Well, let us go¡­ Through the scary bridge and into the castle¡­¡±


    ¡°Actually¡­¡± Ari paused. ¡°I want to stay for now¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­ B-But I ne?¡ª¡±


    ¡°You got this Yami.¡± She winked at me with a smile¡­


    Ari left me to face the castle of terror and imminent doom alone. The castle gave an eerie feeling seeing it was black and green-themed, it did not even have glass windows, just¡­ open-air windows that had cobweb on them and seemed to be leaking miasma as if it was steam.


    With yet another gulp I pressed forward. ¡°Zombie, ghoul¡­ Skeleton¡­ they all are and will be weak compared to me¡­ It¡¯s a math-based thing, yeah¡­¡± I somehow managed to convince myself with skewed logic as I walked past the bridge with shaky legs. How to put it¡­ Facing a horde of zombies with adrenaline was not the same as sheepishly walking into a castle that seemed to be made just to kill you¡­


    I walked into the gate, there was a spacious courtyard with withered trees and covered with moss. The first thing I noticed was that the silence was almost deafening, it was so quiet. No wind¡­ No¡­ nothing¡­ I could almost hear my heartbeat.


    With a bit of insecurity, I kept walking forward, seeing there was nothing. Although the courtyard felt almost as if it stretched forever, or maybe I walked slowly. A few steps at a time, a bit of progress was made. Slowly but surely I was approaching the entrance hall.


    ¡°Maybe I was jus?¡ª Eeeee!¡± I shouted like a little girl as I felt a strong force tug my foot. Making me fall on the process and look at my leg with confusion, a boney hand had taken hold of it. With a bit of annoyance I grabbed my knife. Although something was weird, the hand did not feel¡­ Attached to something¡­ it did not have much strength. I moved my leg and it came off the ground cleanly, just the forearm and the hand itself.


    ¡°Huh¡­¡±


    ¡°Who dares, enter my¡ª Wait... uh¡­ castle thing¡­ What is this thing anyway?¡± Ehh¡­ ¡°Anyway, prepare to be vanquished by Jermud!¡± I looked at the source of the voice, it was a knight in full armor. Although something seemed off¡­. Oh right, his armor was half broken and I could see his bones!


    ¡°W-Wait!¡± I stammered. H-He was a talking skeleton¡­ Summoning potential?! Haa¡­


    ¡°There is only waiting once you are dead!¡± With a flash, I saw a metallic glint next to me. A sword pointing at my eyes. Although the sword paused as it eye¡¯d me with its sharp edge and pointy tip. ¡°Although, I might allow some waiting for once¡­¡± The knight seemed confused as well.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Why can you speak?¡± I decided to ask first, he was a mob, they are supposed to not speak. Besides¡­


    ¡°Pff, how am I supposed to know that? I was taught to? The last thing I remember was being in the throne room overseeing my new kingdom, now I am sitting in an eerie dungeon and have someone that wants to kill me in front of me!¡± Eh¡­


    ¡°How did you even know I wanted to kill you?¡± I asked with confusion.


    ¡°Something tells me you want something from me, so tell me before I kill you. Also, it doesn''t really help that looking at you gives me shivers.¡± I felt the knight send bloodlust my way, I dismissively waved my hands seeing he was going to be my new pet, I mean¡­ seeing he was an intelligent being.


    ¡°I just wanted loot¡­¡± I said.


    ¡°Loot? Do I look like a monster to you?!¡± He pointed his sword and readied himself.


    ¡°Um¡­ We are in a dungeon, and you are the boss, that just so happens to have turned sentient and started talking¡­¡± I explained the situation, even though I was too confused to even truly understand that, that had happened. The knight froze and took a few steps back as he started trembling.


    ¡°T-That makes no sense, this is probably a trap from Krunia!¡± He pointed his sword at me once again.


    ¡°How does it make no sense, look at yourself!¡± I got desperate seeing I did not want to kill him. He was a talking skeleton¡­ H-How could I not add him to summon contract or something.


    The knight, or rather¡­ Skeleton staggered and took his glove off only to reveal a boney hand. He paused and moved his hand, confirming that it was his¡­


    ¡°Hmm... I see... I see..." He trailed into a mutter. "I guess... I-I can... W-What do I do now girl?! I don¡¯t want to die or kill myself because I became THIS!¡± Ohhh, I like where this is going. Mental-breakdown, I like it!


    ¡°Do you want to make a contract?¡± I said with an ear-to-ear smile.


    Alice.

 (Announcement) New Novel!

    A bit of backstory. This is my anniversary event contest entry, the first event I participate in for writing in general! So the contest is rather simple, the story must reach 45k words before April 1st in order to even be a contender to win, so that means this story will continue to progress and grow. Now, now, this story is meant to be a second story, or my other novel, meaning it''s nowhere near short and is expected to have the same duration as Master Craftsman.


    I have been needing an excuse to write another story and actually put effort into it; this is it. This is the excuse.


    I present to you:


    "Leah, Reincarnated As a Dungeon Core".


    Synopsis:


    "Everyone wants to help someone; be someone. Sometimes it''s possible, sometimes the tides of fate take over. How does it feel? Being at the hands of fate for an entire life. I wonder, how would it be? To be free..." - Leah


    Unbeknownst to him being reincarnated in the middle of an ancient process; a sacred ritual that has been broken. An enemy of humanity, and an enemy of its own kind, and an unhelpful LitRPG system. How will he get out of this mess?


    Don''t give me a stupid title! Ehh... I became a girl?! Although, that''s the least of my worries...


    What''s wrong with being a different race?! It''s because of the ears, isn''t it?!


    What is it about?


    Well, it''s a more serious story, that still focuses on slice of life and character progression. Leah is not an overpowered protagonist, so the sense and need for adventure are always there. But of course, it isn''t interesting if there is no spin right? Well, I think the synopsis gives enough as well as the title as far as that goes.


    Story:


    Pssss... All you have to do is click on the image!


    Will you follow her in her journey? She can be pretty cute you know. It''s a story I am truly dedicated to (as you can tell) and it''s just as important as Master Craftsman in terms of priorities. Hope you all at least try it before making your judgement!


    (Will be posting story link on the following chapters as well, the last thing I want is the story to flop.)


    Chapter 76: Making a name for myself (2) Will be releasing in a few hours.

 (Chpt. 76) Making a name for myself (2)

    The skeleton knight paused and lowered his sword, placing it on the ground as he thought to himself. Allowing me to finally get up from the ground and sit instead, I wasn¡¯t planning on standing, seeing I was likely going to be dealing with the situation for quite a while.


    ¡°Hmhm, you speak of a contract. Yet, what do I gain from it?¡± Was he retarded?


    ¡°Not die?¡± I asked the obvious.


    ¡°That sounds like slavery¡­¡±


    Sigh¡­ ¡°Listen, we are in a dungeon, I am the one clearing the dungeon. I am literally the only person in this room, and you are the boss that I need to kill in order to get the rewards. So I can either make the attempt or we can try to resolve this peacefully¡­¡± I wasn¡¯t really willing to negotiate with someone that had no place to negotiate to begin with¡­


    ¡°You are right girl, although there is no way forward for me.¡± Eh? ¡°For you see¡­ Since I was young I swore to kill all undead, and yet¡­ I became the very thing I swore to destroy.¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­¡± He was going to go that route¡­ Also, I feel like I''ve heard those exact words before... Anyway, luckily for me. ¡°Let me ask you something.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± The knight paused and looked at me with a tilted head.


    ¡°Do you feel dead right now? Am I talking to Jermud, or am I talking to a skeleton that calls himself that? Because if so, then I guess I will just kill you¡­¡± I narrowed my eyes and stood up as I firmly held my knife, I wasn¡¯t able to be as hostile as Aizen, but at least I could act.


    ¡°W-Wait!¡± He flailed his arms around. ¡°Let me think!¡± I paused as I saw him panic, looks like I was right. He thought it was a waste to try to kill me seeing he would still be at the same crisis. So if anything it would be better for him to allow me to put an end to his ¡°misery¡±. Interesting. I am glad I listened to the npcs! Although he didn¡¯t quite behave like one.


    I waited a few minutes as he thought once again, muttering things to himself that ended in ''no''s'', but yet he kept pacing around the room as he muttered his things, he really was putting a lot of thought into it, come on... it wasn''t that hard! Not like you had a choice, to begin with... Oh, he stopped and nodded!


    ¡°Very well! Seeing it would be a waste for me to kill you, seeing you are alive, and I am¡­ an undead. I won¡¯t try to kill you!¡± Aha. ¡°I am Jermud, once hero, once king and now¡­ an undead! But in the end, I am still Jermud, and I am more than willing to make a contract with you¡­ Although I still don''t understand what you mean by contract exactly.¡±


    ¡°Glad we can cooperate.¡± I extended my hand. ¡°Will you accept to become my loyal summon?¡±


    He was taken aback but reluctantly held my hand and shook it. I instantly felt a chill run down my spine and jolt of electricity. Making me slightly move, I noticed that he also did the same.


    ¡°That¡¯s it?¡± I shook my head.


    ¡°Now I get to name you!¡± The knight froze.


    ¡°W-Wait, I did not agree to this!¡±


    ¡°Too bad.¡± Hmm. ¡°Your name will be¡­ Jermud is pretty long and weird, hmm¡­ I would say Marco just because but¡­ your name will now be¡­ Hmm, something that sounds great for a death knight¡­ I guess¡­ Jer would be fine, could not come up with anything¡­ Short for Jermud it is...¡± I said in defeat.


    ¡°Uh¡­¡± He froze.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it really doesn¡¯t matter, it¡¯s just the name I will use to refer to you and summon you if needed.¡± Although my words did not seem to make him relaxed if at all.


    ¡°I guess I can¡¯t do anything about it now¡­ Either die or accept it...¡± He said with defeat.


    ¡°Now I see that you under?stand, now wait and se¡ª BOOM¡±


    My vision was clouded with dust and I heard some metal crash against the ground. I looked around in confusion and saw silhouettes rushing from the entrance. Before I could do anything about it, I felt a strong tug on my arm and my center of gravity quickly shift. Giving me slight neck pain.


    ¡°Wha¡­¡± I was taken aback by seeing all of my surroundings spin around me.


    ¡°I am glad you are fine¡­¡± A relieved yet firm female voice said. I felt a sudden pause and gentle swaying as I was laid on a flat surface. After quickly shaking my head to somehow dispel my dizziness I looked around.


    ¡°The miasma dispelled and we rushed here as quickly as we could, I am glad we made it in time¡­¡± The leader said as he panted. He steeled himself and stood firm. ¡°Guys, take the chance now and attack the beast!¡±


    A single command and everyone rushed into the dust cloud and started hitting something metallic, I was petrified by the sudden change of things, and then it dawned on me.


    ¡°What are you people doing!¡± My summon was getting beaten up¡­ ¡°Girl, do something!¡± Eh¡­ I mean¡­ If he couldn¡¯t do anything about it then did he even deserve to be my summon? I heard a lot more bashing. ¡°Girl, I am actually going to die because of your stupid wait command!¡± Oh¡­


    ¡°Umm¡­ I command you to¡­ unfollow my commands and do as you wish!¡± Yea! The rattling and bashing stopped as soon as those words came out of my mouth.


    Some more seconds passed and I heard more clashing, this time it was quickened and unsteady, as if something was happening, then it suddenly became quicker and a lot more rhythmic as things clashed.


    ¡°Kghh¡­ That¡¯s a boss for you!¡± A person came out of the smoke, covered with blood. It was the leader, followed by the assassin with a bloodied arm and an archer that was sweaty. The healer was not here for whatever reason.


    The cloud of dust was still lingering for some reason, it must¡¯ve been some type of spell. I saw something erupt from in front, bringing more dust towards me and shrouding me within it. I was a bit confused, I could not see very far, but it did not bother my eyes, I was just confused.


    ¡°Girly, I am sorry to request so soon. But, I would like to borrow some mana from you¡­¡± Woah, what a knight. I¡¯d be better if he called me master though, I wanted to broaden my horizons... Although it wasn¡¯t time to think about that.


    ¡°I mean, if it¡¯s just a bit you don¡¯t even need to ask, pretty sure you can even use my mana without asking me since our contract is slightly weird¡­¡± I informed him without much thought.


    I did not receive a reply but I did feel his presence vanish. And like that, the dust started clearing up once again. I was left sitting on the ground with visible confusion on my face, the party was grouped up and ready to go on one side of the room, and on the other side Jermud, or now Jer, was ready with a half-broken-twisted-sword-of-evil. That thing would be better described as a haunted branch with sharpness rather than a sword.


    It took me a few seconds to realize that my summon was about to brawl a group of adventurers to death, however, didn¡¯t they hear me command him? Hmm, I kind of wonder why they still wanted to go¡­


    ¡°It¡¯s time to end this¡­¡± Jer commented with a threatening tone as he touched his sword.


    The party did not say anything and readied their weapons firmly, waiting for an attack. I wonder what kind of attack.


    As I thought about the battle I felt a shiver run down my entire body, it felt weird and made me shake a lot. Looking back at Jer his sword was completely clad in black, he seemed a bit confused, seeing he inspected it as if it was the first time it happened. I felt slight head pain as well. Weird¡­ He hadn¡¯t drawn much of my mana.


    The adventurers froze for a second and seemed to hesitate.


    ¡°Are we sure about this?¡±


    ¡°W-We have to..¡±


    ¡°That sword¡¯s aura is¡­ it seems like it¡¯s covered with the scream and sorrow of souls¡­¡±


    Eh, was it that bad? The sword was just black and the weird energy it was clad in seemed to be shaking. But, how could it be something that¡­ dramatic¡­ As I thought about it, they looked back at me with slight panic.


    ¡°Let¡¯s retreat for now Dark sha?¡ª¡± The leader froze as he looked at me, the others followed my gaze and looked at me, also pausing with confusion. Jer also looked at me and also froze with confusion.


    ¡°S-She¡­¡±


    ¡°S-She is a¡­¡±


    ¡°A Necromancer¡­¡±


    They all muttered in disbelief.


    ¡°No, but wait¡­ That aura she has¡­ Are you sure she is not¡­ Something greater?!¡±


    ¡°Like, what?! There is nothing above necromancer!¡±


    ¡°Maybe she is the devil herself!¡±


    I made eye contact with the archer and he started shivering uncontrollably.


    ¡°R-Regardless¡­ S-She is going to kill us any moment now, p-please run!¡± The archer started running frantically afterward¡­ I became incredibly confused, it did not take long before all of them ran in a panic.


    I heard some shouting outside, and some argument breaks out. I couldn¡¯t help but wordlessly tilt my head. Where had I seen this before? Unreasonable panic... Was it?


    ¡°You know, it was hard to make the choice to serve you¡­ But to think you would be such a twisted being¡­ And here I thought I was serving and saving a nice little kind girl¡­¡± Jed absentmindedly said as he looked at me. "Although I kind of had the feeling since I met you."


    I was confused and looked at my hands, they were normal. Everything seemed normal, I looked down and paused with confusion, nothing had changed. Wait¡­ I looked at the sword with confusion, it was still clad in black, then I realized it had a twisted aura. Looking closely, it did seem to be the screams of sorrow that he mentioned. It had skulls and it was consuming itself like a flame.


    A few more seconds went by and the spell on the sword dispelled. Jer was taken aback.


    ¡°What did you do?¡± Eh?


    ¡°Nothing?¡±


    ¡°That¡­ aura of yours¡­ vanished¡­¡± Eh¡­ Was it?


    ¡°You mean¡­ the one that instills fear¡­ and death?¡±


    I asked with uneasiness, he wordlessly nodded. I froze for a second and remade my mind.


    ¡°New command, you are not to use my mana under any circumstances¡­ It seems like no amount of items will save that¡­ This is absolute...¡± I said with slight regret. Jer nodded again with confusion, he did not seem to understand what I was saying, but I did not want to explain it to him. He was just a skeleton knight after all¡­ Although I kind of felt like a hypocrite, I never saw Fenri and Aizen as a tool, and yet I got Jer out of curiosity...


    ¡°Wait!¡± I heard a faint shout from behind me, followed by hurried footsteps. Then I heard some more unintelligible shouting outside. Making me look behind me I saw Ari arrive in a rush, she did not even see Jer standing there with bewilderment.


    ¡°W-What happened? Why did they tell me to run for my life and saying you were going to kill us all?!¡± Ari asked with slight panic.


    ¡°Em¡­ Looks like my aura leaked a bit¡­¡± I silently explained, Ari relaxed upon hearing that, or well. As relaxed as she could be after the disaster that seemed to happen outside.


    ¡°Girl, who is this¡­ other girl?¡± Ah right, Jer did not even know my name and did not seem to want to call me master¡­


    ¡°This is Ari, and I am your Master.¡± I kind of wanted to force it, I needed some fun after the train-wreck that the dungeon was.


    Ari on the other hand froze. ¡°Y-Yami, there is an undead that can speak!¡±


    ¡°Right!? Looks like I was not the only one that did not think it could occur!¡± I said with pride.


    ¡°B-But¡­ why is it not attacking us¡­ and, why does he seem friendly¡­¡± Ari asked with confusion.


    ¡°New summon!¡± Big reveal.


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± Ari paused with confusion or astonishment rather, but once she thought about it her face just went neutral, almost as if it wasn¡¯t impressive at all...


    ¡°I don¡¯t like this girl you call Ari¡­¡± He paused. ¡°She makes me feel¡­ uneasy¡­¡± He said as he paced around her, examining her like some type of object. Undead things I suppose.


    ¡°Well, you will have to get used to it. Or I can send you far away and summon you when needed¡­¡± I kind of wanted to take Jer around, having someone with the appearance of a knight follow me around would be beneficial, since it would stop people from approaching me, yeah¡­


    ¡°I will follow you for now¡­¡± Yay.


    ¡°Hey Yami, um¡­ The only reason you got um, a new summon is because this one can speak?¡± I nodded with slight confusion. It wasn''t entirely accurate after all.


    ¡°Kind of, Fifi can also speak¡­¡±


    ¡°Can he?¡± Oh right¡­ ¡°Well, I guess you really just like new things rather than rocks¡­¡± I nodded seeing her assessment was pretty accurate¡­


    BRRRRRRRRRRR


    The place started shaking¡­ ¡°Looks like there will be no loot for me¡­ Sigh¡­¡± I admitted my defeat.


    ¡°Oh, you mean this?¡± Jer pulled a bag out of nowhere. ¡°I woke up with it and had a feeling it was important, almost as if I had to protect it with my life, but that feeling is gone¡­¡± He handed it to me with slight confusion. "I truly was a dungeon boss,huh?"


    I ignored Jer''s comment and focused on the item bag, it was quite small, could it be? I inspected it and sure enough, it was the popular Item-bag.


    ¡°Um¡­ Can you check what you got after we get out¡­ I don¡¯t want to die in a dungeon collapsing¡­¡± Ari said with slight annoyance. I nodded and Jer was confused but we started going back as fast as possible.


    Unfortunately, I had to carry Ari out of the dungeon, my new summon refused to do after trying it. He said something along the lines of: ¡®It burns my arms.¡¯ I think he was just being melodramatic, but even giving him the order would yield no results. I kind of wished the dungeon wasn¡¯t collapsing, that way I did not have to carry Ari just because we were in a rush¡­ Pathetic summons that could not carry a little girl! I mean, you are an undead sure, but you are the boss! Truly pathetic...


    Alice.


    If you want to support me, please be sure to check out my new novel. (if link doesn''t work it means it hasn''t been approved yet, which makes no sense since cover got approved...)

 (Chpt. 77) Making a name for myself (3)

    Alice.


    I laid on the ground as I got my breath back.


    ¡°Haa¡­ Those were a lot of stairs¡­¡±


    ¡°You know, I am impressed that you were able to keep up with me,¡± Jer nonchalantly mentioned as he looked at the surroundings. ¡°Although, looks like I am indeed dead¡­¡± He paused with slight regret as he looked at the collapsing temple. ¡°So much time has passed huh¡­¡±


    ¡°Yea¡­¡± Ari awkwardly agreed.


    ¡°Well, time for the thing I came for. Fufufu¡­¡± I cheerfully pulled the item-bag I was given as a reward for my harsh efforts, oddly enough the adventurers weren¡¯t around. So, there was that.


    Without hesitation I looked into the opening of darkness inside the bag, seeing I had no vision I just stuck my hand and waved it around. I felt a strange sensation almost as if I was touching pebbles and some various flat items. Without much hesitation I took hold of one and slowly pulled it out of the bag, only to reveal a sword with a gray blade and black handle.


    ¡°Oh, looks nice¡­¡± I muttered as I saw the purple metallic shine it had.


    ¡°I mean, aside from it being cursed I think it looks fine¡­¡± Ari reluctantly informed me.


    I paused for a moment and took a look at it, I did not feel anything but it gave me an ominous feeling, although¡­ It was positive somehow¡­ What kind of curse could be beneficial? Was it because of karma? Wait, now that I think about it¡­ It has been very useless in affecting me and helping¡­ Well, aside from scaring people every now and then¡­


    Although it did not help thinking about it, Ari was right on it being cursed. I mean, simply by logic wouldn¡¯t something with a blessing be something like fire to me? Well, I didn¡¯t know if blessings were around, I only recall enchanting weapons, now that I think about it, it doesn¡¯t matter, does it? Just avoid what you don¡¯t know and don¡¯t try to fix what is working! Yea!


    ¡°Jer, have this cursed sword¡­¡± I threw it to him, for some reason he accepted it without hesitation, then he dropped his other sword. I realized that the one I gave him was an actual sword and not a pointy-stick, so i guess he was still a knight.


    ¡°Well, let us see¡­ What does the bag hold?¡± I stuck my hand inside and took a pebble, or what looked like a pebble. They were rocks! Well, no¡­ They were minerals, mostly rubies and sapphires, as well as some emeralds. For some reason, I felt extremely lucky to get something of such value, even though I had no idea if they were useful here¡­ Although, I bet they are useful for enchanting.


    ¡°Y-Yami!¡± Ari desperately called for me.


    ¡°Hmhm?¡±


    ¡°Did you just take out an emerald, and um, just a lot of expensive stones in general!?¡± Ari asked in a bit of excitement and confusion, I nodded with slight hesitation. ¡°Awa¡­ I heard rumors about dungeons giving great things but¡­ I did not think you would get enough to buy your own castle!¡± Wa¡­ I have a bad feeling about this¡­


    ¡°You know Ari, I normally would be happy to hear that, but it came with a cursed sword which can just be interpreted as bad luck, I can be called the manifestation of bad luck if you think about it. Don¡¯t you think the gems would also be awfully cursed?¡± She paused.


    ¡°Well yeah¡­ I cannot tell if something is cursed unless I am touching it, but the sword you had just had a weird aura coming out of it¡­¡± Oh, I didn¡¯t notice¡­


    On second thought I looked back at the sword, it had a faint aura, although it seemed rather pleasant to me¡­ Weird. I shook my head and sighed, pulling out a small stone, seeing all of them were well¡­ big-pebble sized, could fit in my hand I guess. Without thinking much about it, I took a closer look at the stones and¡­ I felt it¡­


    ¡°Hey Ari, do these things have mana?¡±


    She paused. ¡°Yeah, minerals tend to have at least some mana imbued in them by nature, you know. Mithril is the richest in mana after all.¡± Well, that made perfect sense.


    Without thinking much about it I tried absorbing the mana, and it slowly drained into my hand. This time it did not feel like I was being forcefully shaken by an earthquake and turning into jelly, it felt like¡­ Soothing and relaxing, although there was still something. Wasn¡¯t it cursed? It felt relaxing in general, almost as if all my fatigue was relieved.


    ¡°Hmm, well¡­ I don¡¯t think they are cursed... ¡° I muttered with doubt, Ari came closer and took it off my hand, it was turning opaque but it still had some shine to it.


    ¡°Yami, just because it doesn¡¯t affect you¡­ Doesn¡¯t mean it¡¯s not cursed¡­¡± She muttered with regret as she touched it.


    ¡°Blessings sure come in handy huh¡­¡± I mentioned with surprise.


    ¡°... Yeah¡­¡± And¡­ she had turned bitter all of the sudden, I guess I shouldn¡¯t mention it¡­


    ¡°I know that both of you know each other already, and that I am dead. But like¡­ I think we should move away from here¡­¡± Jer intervened with worry.


    ¡°How come?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean? Didn¡¯t you just get reported by necromancy? I don¡¯t think we want the church to show up here¡­¡± Oh¡­


    ¡°Yeah¡­ Even though I am the complete opposite to your new undead toy I agree¡­¡± Ari reluctantly said her words.


    Although, first of all, I wasn¡¯t a necromancer, I was a summoner. I couldn¡¯t really raise the dead, however, what I could do was find some undead and force a contract upon them. Kind of like enslaving them, but I wasn¡¯t a big fan of the idea, which is why I only had contracts with smart summons.


    ¡°I mean, I am not a necromancer¡­¡± I voiced my inner-voice. ¡°And also, what¡¯s such a big deal about it?¡±


    Jer and Ari simultaneously paused. ¡°W-Wait, Yami, you are telling me you don¡¯t know what the church does whenever there is a necromancy report?!¡±


    ¡°No?¡±


    ¡°What a problem¡­¡±


    ¡°Yami, they are going to send a holy knight! Just to kill you¡­ So¡­ let¡¯s run, while we can¡­¡±  Ari seemed worried and upset, although, what made a holy knight? Holy equipment?! That doesn¡¯t even exist.


    ¡°Yami, I know you are used to danger, but believe me, you don¡¯t want to face a holy knight, they use Divine tier equipment, given to them by the church. There is only about fifteen holy knights in existence and all of them are said to be just as strong as the capital¡¯s Guildmaster¡­ Or as Dan¡­ Huh¡­ that sounded weird¡­¡± Ari confused herself as she realized how important Dan truly was. ¡°Anyway¡­ Let¡¯s run while we can.¡±


    ¡°Do they use full plate armor?¡± Ari nodded hesitantly to my question. ¡°We are staying.¡±


    ¡°G-Girl!¡±


    ¡°Y-Yami, what are you even thinking about?¡±


    I paused. ¡°I want new armor for Jer,  since we can¡¯t have something that is obviously a skeleton walking around with us.¡± They both paused and looked troubled.


    ¡°Yeah, but the armor can wait, besides you can probably make one!¡± Jer hurriedly nodded in agreement.


    I shrugged¡­ ¡°I suppose¡­¡±


    ¡°Now let¡¯s lea?¡ª¡± Ari paused. ¡°Where did we come from?¡±


    ¡°Now that you mention it¡­¡± We were in the middle of a forest.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know this forest, but I can say that it¡¯s that way¡­¡± Our friendly knight pointed towards a tree. Making Ari confused and tilt her head.


    ¡°How do you know?¡±


    He pondered for a second as if it was obvious. ¡°Well, if you pay attention to the ground is worn out and the tree has slight markings.¡± Upon closer inspection, the dry forest ground on that side was slightly caved in like a track, although I did not see the tree markings he was talking about.


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s get back to the capital before anything bad happens¡­¡±


    ¡°Wait¡­ Should we even go to the capital first?¡± Ari questioned with concern, making me tilt my head. ¡°Well, I doubt you want to let go of your new-found summon¡­¡± Ah¡­Right¡­ He literally looks undead¡­


    ¡°Hmm, what a problem¡­ Let¡¯s just get out of the forest now, and after that we¡­ think¡­ Yeah¡­¡± I didn¡¯t really know what I was doing, I really did not think the adventurer¡¯s would run away from me.


    Without much thought, I started walking through the tracks with Ari and Jer, following right behind me, the greenery of the forest was quite interesting, around the temple it looked bad and rotten, but it was bright green now, and the thick foliage covered most of the sun. Yet it still allowed pleasant rays to pass through.


    We slowly and calmly walked down the forest, Jer was also admiring it, I guess it was the first time seeing something like that¡­ I mean, who knows how much of his memories are left? As for Ari, she seemed to also be able to appreciate the forest, so it wasn¡¯t a big deal to take our time.


    Some more passing through, I kept hearing rippling from the surroundings but nothing ever really approached me.


    ¡°You know, I kind of wonder how you manage to scare all of the monsters away Yami¡­¡± I kind of stiffened, it wasn¡¯t a nice comment, but I wondered the same.


    ¡°Wait¡­ you are telling me you don¡¯t see it?¡± Jer asked Ari with disbelief.


    ¡°No?¡± She tilted her head.


    We paused and looked at him with confusion.


    ¡°When I first saw you I thought I was going to die in no time, even though you were just a girl¡­ That aura or presence rather¡­ it¡¯s not human¡­¡± He said with slight confusion. ¡°Although, I did not think it could get scarier when I saw your mana leak, I froze¡­¡± He was talking with sadness and he seemed slightly ashamed¡­


    ¡°¡°Eh¡­¡±¡± Both of us were confused.


    ¡°Probably monsters can see my aura¡­¡± I muttered, Ari paused¡­


    ¡°W-Wait, J-Jer¡­ Did she look like death herself and the look of her eyes was pure evil?¡± Ari asked with slight panic as she recalled her memories. Jer nodded with silence. ¡°I saw her like that before¡­ It¡¯s¡­ scary¡­¡±


    ¡°Just stop! Jer shouldn¡¯t even feel hostility from me since I am his master now!¡± I exclaimed with resentment, annoyance and a bit of embarrassment. They couldn¡¯t talk about me like that¡­ I didn¡¯t even seek to be like this¡­


    I froze and looked at my hand with slight regret. ¡°The day this breaks, it¡¯s going to be hell¡­¡± I muttered with pain as I looked at my glove. I didn¡¯t really have the means to make a new one, or anything of my important things for that matter.


    ¡°Yami, is something wrong?¡± Ari asked with concern.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing¡­¡± I dismissed her, not really wanting to talk about it. She sensed my coldness and not persuaded any further, although she did seem to be weirded out by how I was. I guess I would¡¯ve normally just negated it without being so¡­ cold.


    We continued walking without much talking, eventually getting out of the forest and finding ourselves in yet another predicament. We kind of knew the general direction of the capital, mostly by the visible footstep marks from the adventurers that ran away.


    ¡°So, do we go back?¡± Ari asked me, leaving the decision to me.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Well, I am sure Aizen is having fun¡­ I guess we can take our time. Let¡¯s just... go to the nearest town from here and try to get something done so that Jer can exist around normal people¡­¡± It really did not sound promising but both of them nodded in unison not really having many options.


    With defeat, we started walking to the opposite side to the capital, since it was just a road for horses, it wasn¡¯t a big deal. Although it did concern me.

 (Chpt. 78) Making a name for myself (4)

    Alice.


    After some more time walking, Ari grabbed her head as she realized something, she shook her head and paused. We couldn¡¯t help but be bewildered, she stared deeply into my eyes, making me slightly shiver.


    ¡°Yami¡­¡±


    ¡°... Yes?!¡± I couldn¡¯t help but be startled as she looked at me with those predatory eyes of anger. She seemed to be genuinely mad about something, although I didn¡¯t know what¡­


    ¡°Yami, tell me¡­¡± She made a brief pause. ¡°WHY DO YOU HAVE AN UNDEAD?!¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± What do you mean why¡­ ¡°That¡¯s be?¡ª¡±


    ¡°Because he talks is not a valid reason to bring around something that gives an aura of the dead, and literally makes people around it uncomfortable passively! Just because I notice it more doesn¡¯t mean others won¡¯t notice!¡± Eh.


    ¡°Hmm, even if I don¡¯t like the way she is wording it, she does have a point you know¡­¡± Whaa¡­


    ¡°T-Then what am I supposed to do¡­¡± I nervously interjected.


    ¡°¡±There is nothing you can do!¡±¡± Both of them shouted in unison, making me shy away and look at the ground. I didn¡¯t think an undead would be such a bad idea, although I did remember how undeads were notorious for being rather easy to spot¡­


    We silently walked as Ari sulked and Jer, well¡­ He just admired every little detail, as if he hadn¡¯t seen the world for more than a century! Oh wait¡­


    ¡°Did you say undead aura?¡± I asked Ari, she took a step back in confusion and nodded with perplexion. I grinned. ¡°Jer, I order you to not leak any undead aura anymore. This is absolute!¡± I screamed at him, perks of being a top tier summoner were the commands.


    ¡°You know, I heard you, but like¡­ I can¡¯t do anything about it¡­¡± He said with a bit of disappointment. Ari nodded her head as she looked at me.


    ¡°Commands don¡¯t work like that! Just loo?¡ª¡± She froze as she looked at Jer. ¡°W-Wait¡­ it¡¯s gone¡­¡± Jer and Ari were silent, I grinned as I claimed victory.


    ¡°I can¡¯t make him fly, but I can instruct things that are within physical abilities of a user, so while Jer did not know how to control his aura, apparently his level was high enough to control it. If that makes sense¡­¡± Ari nodded and so did Jer. ¡°Now thinking about it¡­¡± I muttered as I took a glance at Jer.


    He shivered.


    [Name: ¡°Jermud (Jer)¡±


    Race: Undead (Human), Summon.


    LVL. 93


    Title(s): [Hero] [Destroyer of Krunia] [Zirconia¡¯s champion] [King] (5 others)...


    Karma: 200 [Undead penalty | Real value hidden]


    HP: 135320/130304


    MP: 15398/15398


    ST: 8230/7902


    Luck: 200


    STR: 3201


    AGI: 4920


    CC/CD: 10%


    Classes: [Knight lvl.40.] [Shield Master lvl.40.] [Blade Master  lvl.13.]


    Special skills: [Hidden edge] [Impenetrable defense] [Discipline]]


    I couldn¡¯t help but blink repeatedly as I read what I was seeing. He had two classes of the master category, and even had the disciple skill! Meaning he well¡­ had peerless discipline at whatever he set his mind on. While his stats aren¡¯t that amazing, that hp¡­ Did I just get myself a tank?!


    More importantly, isn¡¯t two master classes really high tier here? Not to be confused with the true Master classes, the ones that start with the word master are really special! Well, besides he does have that shiny hero title, it¡¯s probably the real deal. I really got myself a nice summon, I couldn¡¯t even completely change the name!


    ¡°Yami?! Yami!¡± Ari was shaking me.


    ¡°Haaahaa¡­¡± I had just gotten myself probably the best summon in this world.


    ¡°Stop! Stop! Your saliva is leaking!¡± She shook me real hard, finally bringing me back to my senses. ¡°What¡¯s the big deal?¡± She asked with slight curiosity and anticipation.


    ¡°Jer is really special¡­ Like, a legendary item type of special¡­¡± I muttered with slight excitement as he stood there with visible confusion.


    ¡°And may I ask, what makes you think that?¡± His inquiry wasn¡¯t bad.


    ¡°I saw your stats, they are passable.¡± I nonchalantly informed him.


    Unexpectedly he kind of froze. ¡°You know, I am well aware you are a monster, but if everyone is a monster like you, then I don¡¯t think I should be here¡­¡± Woaa¡­ He seemed really discouraged.


    ¡°Em, I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s any reassurance, but Yami is one of the only monsters I have encountered¡­¡± Ari clumsily tried to reassure Jer, in response he just quietly nodded.


    ¡°If you say so¡­¡±


    I couldn¡¯t help but be confused, was he really proud of his stats or something? Well, he was a hero after all, I just did not think people took stats to a personal level. Well, something new to learn I suppose.


    ¡°Yami, just because he is an undead doesn¡¯t mean he doesn¡¯t have emotions¡­¡± He nodded.


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± I really couldn¡¯t tell what was going on. ¡°Anyway, he does not have the undead aura you speak of anymore, so going into a town shouldn¡¯t be that much of a problem. We just need to um...  Cover him a bit¡­¡± I muttered as I saw his completely tattered armor.


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± Ari also realized that he was obviously a walking skeleton.


    ¡°I really don¡¯t know why you are going through such a hassle for me, even though you could¡¯ve just killed me.¡± Jer spoke his true thoughts.


    ¡°Because you are rare!¡± Hehehe~


    ¡°You did say that¡­ But aren¡¯t you rarer?¡± That kind of hurts¡­


    ¡°I digress! Just because I am unique, it doesn¡¯t mean I am a walking skeleton!¡± I declared the differences.


    ¡°You are right, you are just a walking demon king that has white hair and heterochromia.¡± I kind of paused. Everyone had just said odd-colored or things like that.


    ¡°You know what heterochromia is?¡± He nodded without thinking about it.


    ¡°I am a walking corpse already, and besides the information is probably unattainable at this point, but there was a book I read when I was younger, it mentioned a lot of rare things and some health conditions, and just curious life things in general. Even though your eyes are the first thing I see that the book depicted¡­¡± He said as he doubted himself, probably trying to recollect his thoughts.


    ¡°I see¡­ I kind of wonder how old you are anyway¡­¡± I muttered trying to hide slight excitement and confusion. ¡°Ari, is there a place called Zirconia?¡± My thoughts were all over the place.


    ¡°Em¡­ If I remember correctly, it used to be the old Sorinea, and that was around eh¡­ two-hundred years ago¡­¡± Eh¡­


    ¡°So that¡¯s how long it has been¡­¡± Jer sadly murmured.


    ¡°So you are saying back in your ancient times, there was a book that had such information?¡± He nodded. I paused and started thinking.


    While, I don¡¯t know much about things, one thing is certain. That book was written by someone in a similar situation to me, well similar in the sense of being here now. No idea if he died or something to get here. I mean, at least now I know there are people from the game in here¡­ I wonder if there is anyone alive at this point though¡­ Was I the last one? No, I don¡¯t feel that special, I probably won¡¯t be the last one.


    ¡°Well, we should get moving, Yami let me borrow something.¡± I tilted my head as she went behind me and pulled, something got caught on my forehead and threw my backwards, making me almost fall to the ground.


    ¡°What are you doing?!¡± I panicked as I recovered my balance, however Ari did not answer my cry and instead was doing something.


    ¡°Well, that should do it.¡± She said from behind me with slight pride, making me turn around. Jer was covered with my cloak and Ari¡¯s cloak. He basically had cloaks on either side, making a mantle.


    ¡°You could¡¯ve said you just wanted a mantle¡­¡± I voiced my discontent without thinking twice about it.


    I rummagged my inventory and found a tunic that I probably would¡¯ve never worn, I did notice that I did not have many things left inside. Just a few weapons, some accessories and clothing. Although nothing was of superb quality. I handed Jer a tunic out of nowhere and took my cloak back.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know you had spatial storage¡­¡± He said with shock. I shrugged and pointed at the tunic on his hands, he immediately nodded and started to put it on. Albeit a bit clumsily because of the restricted armor movements.


    ¡°Ari, please don¡¯t do that again¡­¡± She slowly nodded as I made my request. I think she kind hurt my neck a bit, although I was sure she didn¡¯t mean any harm. She probably just had to pull up and then backwards, and it got caught. ¡°Well, enough thinking. Let¡¯s go to the nearest town now.¡±


    This time there wasn¡¯t a weird atmosphere as we absentmindedly walked down the road. It was surprisingly empty, well, considering the road also led to the capital. I mean, I had no idea what day it was. But I would¡¯ve assumed there would be some carriages at least passing by, now that I thought about it, there were no carriages even when we first were going to the temple. Weird.


    ¡°Yami, you seem to unusually be thinking a lot right now¡­¡± Hey!


    ¡°There is no carriages on our way there, nor when we first came to the dungeon, that¡¯s all¡­¡±


    ¡°Oh that? Well, there are specific trade routes that go in and out of the capital, so carriages can only take those, these roads are for nobility carriages and nothing more, maybe horse riding as well.¡± Oh.


    ¡°I see, well I guess there is nothing to worry about.¡± Although not like there was anything to worry about to begin with, other than being a little bit skeptic about the situation, but that will no longer be necessary.


    * * *


    We uneventfully continued walking without a hitch, before I realized I could see some walls at the distance. The walls weren¡¯t eye-burningly white, but they were made out of stacked rock, I could observe that they were made with care and smoothened out to portray a solid and sturdy wall.


    Jer also seemed awfully curious about things. As he stared at the walls, I wonder how would he see the capital? Would he burn to death from too much white? Things to know and research¡­


    Without saying anything we continued walking to the gates, surprisingly they were failry wide, allowing to pass two carriages side by side, although if it was meant to be a more um. ¡°Private¡± route, I kind of wondered why they were that big.


    Without leaving me time to think, we stood before the gates. I looked at the entrance arch that overarched the insides of the gate. The rock seemed old yet solid. The gates were made out of wood and had a door, we couldn¡¯t see the inside of the city. However, there was something weird. There were no guards.


    Without thinking twice about it, I knocked on the embedded wooden-door, there was no response. I couldn¡¯t help but take a step back in confusion, Ari seemed equally as confused. Jer simply did not know what was going on so he decided  to stay quiet.


    ¡°Is anyone there?¡± Ari slightly raised her voice as she asked. There was still no reply, we couldn¡¯t help but become even more confused, I mean, it was a town gate, that had no people nor guards. That¡¯s weird, isn¡¯t it?


    After a few seconds of staring into each other. I heard some locks be removed from behind the door, and slowly open. There was a brigade of knights standing there, although they did not have their weapons out so at least we didn¡¯t have to worry about that.


    ¡°Oh, what do we have here?¡± A knight asked with a bit of surprise as he observed us. He was dressed in the same silvery armor all of them had, but he also had a blue band with the kingdom¡¯s logo travelling across his chest. Needless to say he was probably important.


    He paused in awkwardness as all we did was stare at him. ¡°Were all of you trying to get into the city?¡± We nodded. ¡°Alright, I will need some type of registration. Sorry in advance, we all had an emergency and had to leave¡­¡± He clumsily scratched his helmet, making a bad metal scratching sound.


    I just showed my obsidian tag that had my fake name on it, he paused. ¡°You see, we just came back from our quest and we lost quite a bit of things. Specially the registrations.¡± I handed him the tag so that he could closely examine it.


    He looked at it with a discerning eye, he even smelled it and checked it down to the last detail. Eventually he sighed. ¡°Looks like it¡¯s real, Miss Dark Shadow, you and your party are welcome in the city of Niyer, north of the Capital city of Tortul.¡± How awe inspiring. ¡°But please get the registrations for your friends as soon as you can, it can cause trouble.¡± He sincerely informed me as he turned around and gave commands to his I assume battalion.


    They all diverged to the sides of the door, I assume to get atop the walls. ¡°Please, come in.¡± The knight leader gestured us to pass, not before making eye contact with Jer,  which made him shiver a bit. I guess he was intimidating, I did not realize but he was almost twice as tall as me. Needless to say he was a towering figure of death, mhm!


    Once we passed the door, the knight captain did a formal salute and started to completely open the wooden gate by spinning a wheel. We turned and faced the city, it seemed kind of like the capital; all pavimented with rock and it had a bunch of businesses. We were standing in a plaza, it probably wasn¡¯t the main one, but it had inns and a guild, as well as an armory! Well, rather, it was a shop that had a sword and shield with a helmet as a symbol.


    ¡°So, where are we going now?¡± Ari asked with a bit of uneasiness.


    ¡°To the guild!¡± Surprisingly no one really looked much at Jer.


    ¡°Are you okay? You are bringing him!¡± He pointed at Jer. ¡°You are going to bring that to adventurers?!¡± Eh.


    ¡°That¡¯s not very nice of you¡­¡±


    ¡°Well, if we finish our quest there is no risk to the quest failure part, and we might be able to make him an adventurer as well.¡± Yay.


    ¡°That¡¯s true, but?¡ª¡±


    ¡°But nothing. Let¡¯s go!¡± Ari sulked as she followed me, Jer was just quiet as he observed everything.


    We entered the doorless guild, some eyes glued on us, mostly on Jer, who was incredibly tall. New warrior I suppose, thankfully no drunk person stood up to get into a fight. We arrived at the receptionist who had a friendly and warm smile.


    ¡°What may I do for you girl?¡± I took a step back seeing she was nowhere near as bad as the last one. She tilted her head with a bit of confusion but did not say anything.


    ¡°I was wondering if we could turn in quests from other adventurer branches¡­¡± I muttered, it might¡¯ve been common sense and I didn¡¯t know about it, last thing I wanted was the entire guild teasing me.


    ¡°Well, you can. Although it¡¯s fairly uncommon¡­¡± She said with a bit of confusion. ¡°All you need is the guild card and some type of subjugation proof.¡±


    ¡°Then please¡­¡± I handed her my guild card and looked at Jer. ¡°Can I have that sword you were using before the replacement?¡±


    ¡°I dropped it¡­¡± Oh¡­


    I turned back to the receptionist. ¡°Would loot count?¡± She nodded.


    ¡°I mean, if we can trace the origin of it using a stone, I suppose¡­¡±


    I turned back to Jer. ¡°Hand the sword over.¡± He nodded and gave it to me. It was in the scabbard so it didn¡¯t feel that bad.


    ¡°Well, I will place the sword here, although I would suggest not touching it¡­¡± I said as I absentmindedly set it atop of the counter. The receptionist nodded with a bit of confusion and started to use some magic on the card.


    Her eyes momentarily widened and she handed me back the card. ¡°I will need you to go speak to the guild master, also, take the sword with you.¡± I nodded seeing she turned serious and took the sword back.


    She left the counter and escorted us upstairs, some adventurers were curious about what happened. Others were chatting about how we were going to get banned from being adventurers for stealing or something. I had no idea. Without thinking too much about it we arrived at the guild master¡¯s office.


    The receptionist approached the door.


    ¡°Come in.¡± I heard a voice from inside before she could even knock on it. She nodded at us and left. With a bit of confusion we stood before the door and opened it.


    The room was completely dark, and all I could see was a dimly lit couch, it was kind of unsettling. We all looked at each other and entered, sitting on the couch with a bit of confusion.


    ¡°So, I heard your tales¡­¡± It was an ominous voice and we could hear it in the entirety of the room. ¡°What brings you to my guild? But more importantly, why would you bring an undead here?¡± I felt a slight caress on my neck.


    Alice.


    PLEASE READ:


    So updates have been inconsistent, they will more than likely remain inconsistent until april. Sorry about that, anyway, this is here becasue I want to say. There might be one or two chapters a month maybe 3 or 4 maximum. The chapter lengths will increase dramatically. So what am I saying? Well, I am here to be a f*cking sellout.


    Read 7 chapters ahead on my Patreon!  Which is about 2 to 3 months worth of content. How many words? Well, a rough estimate would be 35k+ at this moment.

 Announcement

    Alice.


    So soon and you are already making an announcement.


    I would say this is important as it affects the series. It''s not getting a hiatus


    What is it that I am trying to say? So very quick run-down. I''ve been struggling with constant updates of craftsman for a few months now. As literally everyone can tell by this point. So a few months back I came up with this genius solution. Make chapters longer.


    What does this mean? Well, it basically means I get less views. Yes, the only thing that matters. Just, kidding~ I do get less views but it also allows me to update things a lot more easily. So anyway, craftsman will be moving into a weekly schedule when I actually have time to fix things.


    So basically this means that when I do start posting things as normal, there will be a steep decrease in chapters and a steep increase in word count. Chapter 80 is 11k words...  So, it''s something I wanted to say since I didn''t think there would be a better time to do so. There will be at least two chapters coming this month, albeit probably by the end of it.


    What gives?


    Well, since I am a piece of shit a nice person I''ll use this chance to make a few suggestions.


    First of all, there is now a discord. Yes now I have a Discord. (Click on the image to join!)


    So anyway, aside from having a discord now. You can also read 7 chapters ahead of craftsman inside my Patreon! Yes I already mentioned it in the last chapter. Why do I mention it again? Because this month there will be two chapters at best. And Patreon currently has 30k+ words to read on! It''s affordable as well I''d say. Patreon tier will come bundled with whatever novel I add to Patreon too, so think of it was 7 chapters ahead in any novel I make. Click on the image.


    Interested in reading more of my work?


    Leah, Reincarnated As a Dungeon Core!


    Title is utter clickbait, not to say it''s irrelevant. Until next time everyone!

 Confession

    Alice.


    It''s been one year... I think it has. Since the story has existed...


    Sigh... What am I even doing? I don''t really know, what I am even saying might even be irrelevant. I don''t know anymore. It''s like - an empty bastion - meaning to protect something, or make a testament to something, but alas... It never really happened did it? I don''t really know what to say, I''ve been pondering about it for a few days. The novel suffers from constant hiatuses and there is no good excuse for it.


    I suppose I should introduce myself first... Not as the self-loathing author, not as the sarcastic one or the one that tries to be funny... I am...


    I am the cover artist and initial editor of this project originally called "Zeileheim project". A silly novel made by some friends that was meant to go nowhere. A pipe dream if you will. Injected with dumb character designs and dumb ideas. Just a lovely project made by some people that wanted to have some fun. It was undoubtedly cringy when it first existed.


    The project consisted of two people, me, and... Azrie... Yeah, it''s getting weird. And there were some other collaborators that woulda dd ideas to the pile. Because why not? It was a thing for fun. I don''t really know what to say at this moment, but I guess I''ll keep explaining. Perhaps I can reach some conclusion by the end of the story. So let us start, the story has started and the two chapters were written. It''s going to be a bit simplistic and ambiguous because honestly, I don''t feel like dealing with the detailed story right now... Perhaps one day I''ll tell it, perhaps I never will.


    The story has started.


    Fast forward a bit, and we come up with the idea that we should post it. Well, I did. Azrie, well... She wanted nothing to do with the posting- also was the main writer, but she was okay with it. I was more of an editor/plotline person we can tell I didn''t do a good job at it. So anyway, in an attempt to not steal the credit I basically became "Azrie", simply for posting and interactions - I was still the editor. But I wasn''t going to claim something under my own penn-name. It wasn''t meant to be that...


    Fast forward a bit more, and it''s chapter 18. I forgot the point of the story, but as we can see it''s pretty early on. The story has been doing pretty well, and is hitting trending and stuff. I personally feel overjoyed that people seem to be liking the little project of ours, and at the same time was kind of in a mental turmoil - so there were a few missteps in terms of author notes and random apologies... Sorry about that one.


    That day... I forgot the date already - pretty ironic considering I still remember the first page of the novel came to existence in May 13th 2019... Anyway. I received a message.


    A simple line. "I am done". That was it. That was the entirety of the message. I was confused but never really got an answer, aside from knowing from friends that she was going to entirely focus on college.


    I guess it was time to say goodbye to this passion project... Something that I had gotten myself invested into, something that other people wanted to see. All gone, the main writer was gone, and the editor was left. Someone that has never written before, with a barely basic understanding of English. I knew it shouldn''t have been posted... It was... the end... Or was it really the end? I felt attached, particularly to this tsundere dragon. A character that came out of nowhere simply because I said - "Wouldn''t it be funny to genderbend a dragon for no particular reason?"


    Honestly, it kind of felt like killing the characters off by dropping it. And so... I took over- I guess you could say. I became Azrie. New author and editor. Having next to zero experience writing I started by trying to mimic what was previously written. Absolutely no idea what I was doing. But it slowly started to become something.


    We all know how far that has gotten. Already at chapter 70+. But now I am stuck, afraid of continuing the story in a sense. Because well... I have no idea what the story was initially going to be. It basically became my very own story, it''s my story now. I get to do whatever I want with the characters, right? Yes that''s pretty correct, but I still feel awkward thinking of the other possible routes to where the story could''ve gone.


    Doing research on blacksmithing and getting it wrong was fun. I have no idea what was planned in the original outline. As in - events that could or should happen. I was simply someone that made sure the pacing was alright, rather than the plot itself. It was initially a project made for fun, nothing more, nothing else... Just that - something for fun.


    And now I am here. Making a confession, not as Azrie, but myself. It feels as if I was lying to absolutely everyone - including myself. By continuing to use this account, and keep making excuses of why nothing was being posted. Truth be told, I just don''t want to mess up, often questioning what were the original intentions. What did Azrie originally want? Unfortunately, I might never know, no longer in contact and I have no interest in what she is doing either. I am no saint, and I would be lying if I said I didn''t feel abandoned.


    Just constant struggle with the plotline and what things need or not to happen. Sorry...


    For lying, and for making such a sorry case for myself. After all, I could''ve said absolutely nothing, and simply continued to post as normal. But I felt it necessary to continue and move on. Not as Azrie but as myself. So please, take care of me moving forward. I will request a name change from Tony hopefully soon. Thank you all for reading...


    And I do hope we can continue to have fun with the story - sorry for being such a phony... It... I am ashamed of it, continuously lying to myself and to others to simply justify my ineptitude.


    It won''t happen again, it''s a promise. Perhaps things might remain inconsistent, but at least I will remain truthful. I feel truly ashamed of what has happened. Success built on a throne of lies is nothing but a joke, therefore let''s rebuild said throne on truths and laughter instead. I would stab myself if I could... - Alice.


    I hope I can forgive myself...

 (Chpt. 79) Making a name for myself (5)

    Alice.


    I am just going to pretend I did not disappear for 30 years and continue as nothing has happened before disappearing again. So yes, it''s another round of cliche isekai with retarded jokes that still make me laugh for some reason! On a more serious note, thanks to anyone that still follows this novel. I truly don''t deserve anything after being so inconsistent.


    Unedited


    The atmosphere was slightly unsettling and a bit threatening, I did not feel like I was going to die here. So that was a nice thing. However, the slight touching around my neck area would not stop. Although the entire room turned dark. I kept hearing sounds around me, probably the Guildmaster.


    ¡°Um, it¡®s a tamed undead¡­¡± I lied through my teeth, although it was kind of true.


    ¡°I did hear you had a tamed silver wolf. Considering I haven¡¯t seen one in years, I guess I will believe you for now¡­¡± The tone of voice changed to a more feminine one. ¡°So, what can I do for you?¡± She became rather friendly.


    ¡°Em¡­¡± I attempted to relax. ¡°Quest completion?¡±


    ¡°I see¡­¡± Her voice was still mysterious and quiet, almost like whispers. I heard some fondling and felt a slight touch on my back, it made me shiver. ¡°Weird... I cannot find anything on you. Not even your guild card, nor can I see your status for that matter...¡± ¡­ She is dangerous...


    ¡°... It¡¯s here¡­¡± I held my guild card out in nervousness.


    All I heard was silence, not even the movement of anything. It kind of made me doubt if Ari and Jer were with me anymore.


    ¡°... Alright then¡­¡± She took the card and after a few seconds I felt it in my hand. ¡°The quest was marked as completed, I don¡¯t really care about your clearance proof, I already saw plenty just now¡­¡±  Eh.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked with confusion.


    ¡°You realized it, didn¡¯t you?¡± Eh? ¡°Not to bore you with the details. Since I already got everything I wanted I guess it¡¯s fine. We are even, yes? You get your quest I get my information.¡±


    ¡°I mean¡­ I guess? I don¡¯t quite understand what information you got¡­¡± I worded my confusion.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t even realize it¡­¡± She kind of sounded upset. ¡°It¡¯s the first time this happens! Tell me, do you have some type of blessing? To withstand it like that¡­ Or it could it maybe be that you are higher level than me? I¡¯ve heard a lot of things about you after all.¡± Eh¡­


    I have to think, she is being creepy and weird! Think¡­ Oh yeah she did mention something.


    ¡°We are even, yes? You got plenty of information already, I would like to assume the Guildmaster is just as trustworthy as the Capital¡¯s Guildmaster¡­¡±


    ¡°Tch fine, leave before I change my mind¡­¡± She went from being creepy to childish¡­


    ¡°Um, how do I leave?¡±


    I asked with confusion. All I heard was a sigh and a finger snap. Suddenly the darkness cleared and I was in a room with a couch, I did not know what room it was. It had a desk and a lot of documents on it as well as bookshelves and even a map pinned on the wall.


    ¡°Huh¡­¡±


    ¡°That was weird¡­¡± I heard a mutter to my side, turning my head there was Ari.


    ¡°That person was¡­ dangerous¡­¡± Jer muttered from my other side. I guess we all had some type of weird experience with the Guildmaster.


    ¡°Even the kid is unaffected. Interesting¡­¡± We the guildmaster¡¯s ominous voice inside the room although we couldn¡¯t really figure out where she was. ¡°Leave before I change my mind.¡±


    The three of us just looked at each other and with a single nod, we stood up and left the room.


    All of us stood just outside the room on the second floor. Jer seemed a bit uneasy, thankfully the hallway was empty. So we had time to relax and think about what happened there.


    Without saying a single word we left the guild, we didn¡¯t make any eye contact with any of the personnel nor the adventurers for that matter. Jer seemed a bit unstable as I saw his hands shaking, however, no one knew he was an undead yet.


    We stood just outside the guild when I felt a cold grip on my hand. ¡°Can we go to an inn first?¡± Jer requested. I awkwardly nodded and so did Ari. We looked around the plaza and saw an inn, it was a three floor wooden installment.


    Opening the door a pleasant bell rang.


    ¡°Welcome~¡± We heard a soft and gentle voice. ¡°Room for three? How many nights?¡± Lifting my eyesight I was met with a nice woman/girl. She had unblemished skin and a nice smooth dark hair that didn¡¯t go past her jaw. She was pretty and appearance wise she looked a bit older than me.


    ¡°Um¡­ How many nights?¡± She asked again in awkwardness as she tilted her head. I looked back at Jer and Ari. Ari thought for a second and lifted three of her fingers.


    ¡°Three nights for now, please¡­¡±


    ¡°Ah, yes. Three nights So, I assume you all want the most luxurious room?¡± Eh. ¡°A warrior and two refined young ladies, I have a feeling you all really like quality.¡± She smirked.


    ¡°B-But¡­¡± Did she just keep making assumptions?


    ¡°No buts, I can tell by your hair, you like baths. Also, all of you look like successful adventurers.¡± Eh. ¡°Well, all it takes is asking for a normal room, so don¡¯t feel pressured. I haven¡¯t had many clients lately so I¡¯ve been bored. Trading has been slow since the king changed.¡±


    ¡°You mean um¡­ what was his name?¡± I made a brief pause to remember. ¡°Gazel?¡±


    ¡°Yes, he implemented a lot of laws regarding trading because apparently he believes he has too many enemies, or something like that¡­¡± And now she was complaining about it.


    ¡°I can sort of understand¡­ But, why do you have to force a luxury room onto us?¡± I asked with curiosity.


    She scratched her cheek awkwardly. ¡°Well, I thought your beauty would go to waste if you didn¡¯t take a single bath in three days, we don¡¯t have a public inn bath. Instead they are all private. Also, the only rooms that have room service are the third-floor ones.¡± That still made no sense¡­ ¡°I also um¡­ thought you were really pretty¡­¡± Em¡­


    Was she flirting with me!? Also, don¡¯t I look like a teenager at this point in time?! I am beyond confused¡­


    ¡°Do you have a special skill that makes people be attracted to you?¡± Ari whispered her question into my ear, which made me frantically shake my head. The receptionist had tears well up on her eyes, making me slightly panic.


    ¡°Um¡­ I will take that luxury room, but I don¡¯t feel the same way about you¡­¡±


    ¡°Very well, that would be one gold coin for three nights!¡± She cheerfully said without any feeling whatsoever.


    ¡°Eh¡­¡±


    ¡°You got played¡­¡±


    ¡°Played indeed¡­¡±


    Ehhhh¡­ I reluctantly walked to her and gave her the coin, she smiled and gave me a really pretty room key, it was golden and had some type of ceramic at the tip.


    ¡°Third floor, you will know when you see it.¡± Eh¡­


    I reluctantly made my way upstairs without making any eye contact, I did not want anything to do with someone that played with my feelings like that just to do their job¡­ that was¡­ mean to say the least. I was feeling upset as we continued walking up stairs, after a bit we ended up on the third floor. It was noticeably different.


    As opposed to the previous floors this one had ceramic flooring, it was no comparison to the wood. There were two rooms.on the narrow hallway, they were perpendicular to one another. One had a blue handle and one a pink handle. I looked at our key for reference, the ceramic that it had at the tip was pink. As anyone would assume I walked to the door that had the same color and inserted the key.


    Surprise, surprise. It clicked and effortlessly opened with the well-oiled hinges the door had. I couldn¡¯t help but leave my mouth wide open. It had a living room with a nice glass table, it had a small kitchen with a stone oven and cabinets. It had a bathroom and a different room with beds. It was almost like a mini apartment.


    ¡°You know¡­ I felt betrayed when I paid the gold coin, but I don¡¯t think I feel the same after seeing this¡­¡± I muttered my true thoughts.


    The only reply I was met with was silence.


    Ari and Jer took a seat on the living room couch, the room seemed to be made just for nobility.


    ¡°Now it is time to talk about that Guildmaster.¡± Ari said with seriousness.


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± Jer was unusually quiet.


    ¡°Um, I mean, she was weird, but what about her?¡± I muttered my confusion out-loud.


    Ari sighed. ¡°She figured us out with a single spell, that¡¯s the problem. While I am certain she does not know specifics, I am certain she at least knows we are out of the norm.¡±


    Jer finally sighed. ¡°You know, I was happy to see how much the outside world had changed, but you know. It saddens me to see that, or rather. I also find it unsettling, that magic has been around for so long and yet it still exists. That woman tried to pry into our souls and see all of our secrets, thankfully we all had some type of protection¡­¡±


    ¡°How so?¡± I asked paying a bit more attention to the topic.


    Jer continued. ¡°In my case, she couldn¡¯t do anything due to my level advantage. I assume it is the same for you. And as for little Ari, since she burns me every time I touch her I assume it has to do with that¡­¡± Ari slowly nodded.


    ¡°And that is troublesome¡­ Darkness magic I suppose¡­¡± Ari made her guess, Jer wordlessly nodded alongside her.


    I sighed. ¡°I am sure Aizen would know about this, although I guess all we can do is stay away from the Guildmaster as much as we can¡­¡± My response was met with two nods. ¡°And um, about the church? Can I get more information about this um, holy knight or whatever it was?¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­ I guess I should explain, but please promise me you will not fight one!¡± She desperately asked I nodded with a bit of confusion.


    ¡°You see, holy knights are well¡­ Holy for a lack of a better word. They are sent by the leader and are armed with items that are said to hold divinity, or whatever. Their items tend to be treasures so there aren¡¯t many of them. However, the church takes things very seriously. For example, according to the story of necromancy it is based on stealing divinity of life, which goes against the church¡¯s principles.¡± I nodded hearing her sort of lengthy explanation.


    ¡°So, basically. They are equipped with high grade items and they could even be in the Divine tier? And um¡­ Since those type of items are rare there¡¯s only so many of said knights, and also the church worships some type of divinity?¡± Ari nodded with a bit of confusion.


    ¡°I mean, yeah. You picked it up way quicker than me, I thought it didn¡¯t make sense when I first heard it¡­¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t make sense¡­ that¡¯s religion¡­¡± I muttered


    ¡°Anyway, they worship the strength of items or whatever power grants the items power for lack of a better word.¡±


    ¡°I see¡­ So basically they worship the entirety of whatever the world runs on?¡± Ari nodded with slight confusion.


    ¡°Well, yes. They worship the basis of the world¡­¡±  Huh. Well I guess wording it as if it was an operating system would be confusing for someone that does not know anything different to it.


    I sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know what I expected, but I am sure Aizen could end one of those knights in a single second¡­¡± I sighed once again and left out an empty laugh recalling the tyranny of the stubborn dragon inside the game.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what kind of existence this ¡®Aizen¡¯ is, but I feel like I don¡¯t want to know¡­¡± Jer said with slight fear.


    ¡°You don¡¯t want to know¡­¡± Ari added to the fire.


    ¡°Well, now we have all of our things sorted out. Kind of, so let us get to the important things.¡± Both of them looked at me with bewilderment as I grinned. ¡°Time for a new armor of course.¡± Ari¡¯s smile crooked, Jer didn¡¯t seem to have any reaction then again, I could not see his face.


    ¡°Hey, what kind of terrifying creature is this Aizen you both speak of?¡± Ari grinned.


    ¡°Ferocious like an untamed beast, compacted in a small shape that can be as kind as an angel, it can be as ferocious as the king of dragons himself. Total control to fire and almost as if it had a passive body armor that can sustain injuries without problem~¡± Ari sang praises, as Jer petrified more and more.


    ¡°Um¡­ Will it eat me alive?¡±


    ¡°Maybe~¡± Ari grinned and then laughed. ¡°I can see how she gets fun now.¡±


    ¡°Now, now, don¡¯t scare him off. He is a talking undead, he won¡¯t become a chewing toy!¡± I decided to slightly play along, Jer basically turned into a statue of a knight rather than something that looked like a ¡°living¡± being.


    ¡°Well, let us go to explore the town. Just let us not go near the um, rather weird Guildmaster!¡±


    Ari nodded and Jer did a weak nod almost unnoticeable. I guess he was left thinking, did he have some type of PTSD from his wars or something? Well, that just made him more interesting. Although I feel like if he did have something like that, triggering it would literally make me the worst person on this planet¡­


    As I thought about things that were morally right or wrong, we left our room and went downstairs. The receptionist said something with slight panic but we did not listen to her. It did not seem that important and she seemed flustered rather than actual panic.


    We stood at the central plaza not really knowing where to go. I looked far and around, just seeing things. I saw all of the three main guilds and also saw the thing I believed to be an armory earlier. Overall it didn¡¯t seem like a main plaza, but I had a feeling it was the most important plaza. I mean, the inn-keeper did say trade had been slow lately. So I assume this place used to be a lot more¡­ flooded.


    Looking around there wasn¡¯t much, at least armory and equipment wise. I did notice that time had passed, it had been getting darker, or rather the sky was getting orange. It had been a long and eventful day. I noticed that the adventurers¡¯ guild started getting a lot of well¡­ adventurers returning, it started to get flooded on the entrance, as far as everything else in the plaza everything else was normal for the most part.


    The inns looked a bit different from ours, namely a lot more cheaper. The building looked of lesser quality, so I guess we just so happened to choose the most expensive inn out there. I looked around some more, but there was nothing remarkable. After a sigh of defeat I started walking towards the thing I thought to be a weapon shop/armory.


    It had a few adventurers coming in and out of it, so at least it was some kind of business which was slightly reassuring. Jer and Ari tagged along without saying much. After some more walking we entered the fine establishment. Made out of wood and rocks, it seemed to be themed just like an adventurer¡¯s guild.


    Upon entering I immediately realized the place had quite a deceiving appearance. It was a lot bigger than what it seemed, or rather larger I suppose. I noticed they had a long wall and with weapons mounted on it, some kind of wall-like racks that stood there making little aisles for weapon expositions. They had mazes, swords, short swords, they even had scythes. For everyone I suppose.


    I looked around some more and noticed the counter with a tough looking man, he had something that kind of looked like a tattoo of a woman, although I could only assume, since it looked like an unholy shape with curves. He had a lot of scars on his face and a bit of an unshaven beard.


    We approached the counter with a bit of shyness seeing the man behind it did not seem to be friendly at all. He finally noticed us and raised his brow with slight confusion.


    ¡°Do you need something?¡± He was asking Jer.


    ¡°Um, we were looking for some armor.¡± I joined into the conversation.


    The man placed his hand over his mouth and tried not to laugh. ¡°Just because you admire your dad doesn¡¯t mean you need armor, besides, I don¡¯t think I have armor that fits you.¡± His tone was one to use for a child.


    ¡°Actually, we wanted a replacement for him¡­¡± I pointed at Jer.


    ¡°I see, so not your daddy eh?¡± Well¡­ excuse me¡­ ¡°Anyway, don¡¯t get so mad girl. Follow me.¡± With a wave he turned around and started walking aside from his counter. He did not seem worried about it so I did not mention it. He guided us to some type of back room, it was full of armor stands.


    ¡°Anything catches your eye? Armors are really expensive so you cannot see them on the main shop. It¡¯s quite hard to get an armor tailored, so we also offer that service as well.¡± He began his salesman speech as I inspected the armors closely. They were all mostly full plated with the same silver iron finish.


    ¡°Um¡­ do you have something more, um¡­ special?¡± I asked with hopes.


    He lifted his brow. ¡°No good, huh? Looks like we got some special clients.¡± He smiled and got close to a wall that had a lock embedded on the wall. He fondled his shirt and pulled a key, opening a flush door on the wall.


    He turned back at us and smiled. ¡°I don¡¯t really hope you people buy it,  but it¡¯s my proud possession. Don¡¯t even try to steal it since it has insurance from the Adventurers¡¯ Guildmaster.¡±


    ¡°¡±¡°Ah, that woman¡­¡±¡±¡± We all muttered in unison before looking at the armor.


    My eyes widened.


    ¡°It¡¯s great right?¡± He bragged with pride.


    There it was, a full set of armor, white like snow with golden accents. It almost seemed like a piece of art, it had a lot of engravings and it shone like a bright star. It seemed to be almost the perfect armor set for anyone, or rather. It was befitting of a holy knight. Holy undead knight¡­ Haa¡­ I like that.


    ¡°Is it an item?¡± I asked with hope.


    ¡°Oh, little missy knows about such things!¡± He grinned. ¡°It is an item, one made by one of the best blacksmiths on the whole country, he is renowned. It¡¯s a full set of plate armor made out of mithril. It¡¯s a Flawless tier item!¡± My smile dropped. ¡°What¡¯s that reaction, is the price too high? I haven¡¯t even mentioned it¡­¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want it¡­¡± I said with a stone cold face.


    ¡°B-but, missy!¡± He was flustered.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want it¡­¡± I said with the same coldness. He was taken aback and stood there frozen.


    Ari patted me on the back. ¡°I told you such things weren¡¯t normal¡­¡±  She then whispered something to Jer, he froze and nodded.


    Jer bowed. ¡°I am sorry for the inconvenience.¡±


    I didn¡¯t realize it but Jer picked me up and carried me outside as Ari followed him. I was thinking as this happened.


    Why would it be flawless? Why not legendary?! I mean, I understand what Ari said, but how can you take so much pride in something so¡­ mediocre¡­ No, it¡¯s not that. It¡¯s just that they don¡¯t know any better, it¡¯s the same. The less you know about a topic the more you feel like you know about it, it¡¯s the same thing happening here. Of course, they probably see legendary as the absolute maximum. While I cannot say Flawless would be completely bad, I don¡¯t want my undead knight to be dressed in something like that. I at least want it to be legendary¡­


    I was seated on a public bench as I thought about it.


    Jer looked at me with confusion and Ari had a face of concern. I guess I had overreacted. Before I realized an old man approached. He seemed a bit wealthy, seeing his dress seemed well tailored and well¡­ he was slightly overweight.


    ¡°What seems to be the matter, young girl?¡±


    ¡°Ah, she was looking for armor and didn¡¯t find one the quality she was looking for.¡± Jer briefly explained to the old man nodded as he listened. He scratched his reflective scalp and tugged a bit on his ashen beard.


    ¡°That seems slightly troublesome.¡± He paused. ¡°Has any of you tried the craftsman guild?¡± I tilted my head. ¡°You could probably commission something there and have it custom made and everything, there are plenty of blacksmiths working in the area.¡± He took out a pocket watch, something I had never seen before.


    He paused. ¡°Looks like I am running late, don¡¯t be so sad girl.¡± He patted me and left.


    ¡°Um¡­ Yami are you okay?¡± Ari asked with concern as I shook.


    ¡°To the craftsmen guild we go¡­¡± I muttered with hope.


    I stood up and made my way to the craftsman guild, that wasn¡¯t too far away from the bench we were on. The building seemed standardized seeing all of the guilds looked the same. I guess it was to avoid confusion.


    We made our way inside and as normal, it had two rows. One for merchants or buyers or whatever and one for the blacksmiths. The merchant line seemed oddly clear. The blacksmith one had a few people but they seemed to be waiting for something. They eyed me and then sighed as if I was a disappointment. I couldn¡¯t help  but tilt my head at their hostility.


    I approached the counter with confusion. It was empty, I heard some shuffling but couldn¡¯t tell where it was coming from. A few seconds later I heard some more and someone stood up from the counter. It was a male receptionist, he seemed like a hardworking man with moderate muscle although it was unseen for me to see a male receptionist.


    His eyes widened when he saw me.


    ¡°A customer?¡± He asked with slight disbelief.


    ¡°Um¡­ I would like to request a custom made armor¡­¡± I muttered with shyness. What followed was silence, and then chaos insued.


    ¡°Girly, I will make your armor! I am renowned here!¡±


    ¡°I can even get it enchanted for you! It will be the best armor you will ever be able to get. Just tell me.¡±


    ¡°I can do it custom made, with engravings and spells!¡±


    People started making offers.


    ¡°Um, what kind of armor would you like?¡± The receptionist asked with a bit of confusion.


    ¡°Well¡­ It has to be mithril.¡± Half the people dropped their hand. ¡°It has to be enchanted and engraved.¡± Almost everyone dropped their hand but two people. ¡°And¡­ it has to of at least legendary quality¡­¡± Everyone dropped their hand.


    ¡°Girly, that is¡­ unrealis?¡ª¡±


    The receptionist was interrupted.


    ¡°She is making a mockery out of us!¡±


    ¡°Just because you are a kid, it doesn¡¯t mean you can disrespect us like that!¡±


    ¡°You are asking for the impossible!¡±


    Chaos ensued once again. The receptionist dropped his shoulders.


    ¡°You see girly, we don¡¯t have any blacksmiths of such caliber.¡± I regretfully nodded before an idea lit up in my head.


    ¡°May I ask, what happens if a new blacksmith comes. Like, where could they be able to forge?¡± The receptionist tilted his head with bewilderment and opened his mouth, but before he could utter a single word the blacksmiths started making comments about it. Things like, ¡°Where would you find one?!¡± all of them were out of frustration.


    I saw the receptionist start shaking and a vein pop on his forehead, his face was red.


    SMASH!


    ¡°Would you people just shut up! Like for a single minute! You guys are like hungry animals! Just because business slowed down doesn¡¯t mean you need to bully a poor innocent girl!¡± They stayed quiet as the receptionist let all his anger out, then he finally calmed down.


    With a gentle smile he looked at me. ¡°You see, the guild has a public forge, any registered smith can use it and buy metal to work with there. It¡¯s free of charge, provided that you buy our metal to work there.¡± I see


    ¡°I?¡ª¡± Ari held my hand and shook her head. Pulling me down to whisper.


    ¡°If you say anything about being a smith they will throw themselves at you and not leave you alone, make things discrete instead¡­¡± I gulped hearing Ari¡¯s warning.


    I looked at the receptionist. ¡°Can we have a private chat?¡± He nodded and gestured me to a back room. We stood at the small back room that seemed almost like a cleaning closet.


    ¡°Normally this would not be allowed, but seeing you are the first client today it doesn¡¯t matter.¡± I nodded seeing his carefree attitude.


    ¡°I would like to use the public forge!¡± I requested as I handed him my obsidian tag. His eyes widened and he coughed a bit. Wordlessly taking my tag and inspecting it down to the detail.


    ¡°It seems real at least, can I have the craftsman guild identification card?¡± I gave it to him and then again he carefully inspected it. He sighed. ¡°Everything seems to line up.¡±


    After a decisive sigh, he looked at me. ¡°Very well, there is a private forge for the Guildmaster and Obsidian smiths. I can guide you there on the morning, meet me here.¡± He said with a resolute voice as he gave my belongings back.


    Then his expression softened. ¡°I find it incredible such a young girl like you took something as manly as blacksmithing, I am sure you are an inspiration for many people¡­¡±


    Yeah¡­


    He wiped a tear on the corner of his eye and opened the door, gesturing us to leave.


    We left the guild without any inconveniences and went back to the inn.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 80) Making a bad name for myself (6)

    Alice.


    I clumsily scratched my head, waking up wasn¡¯t easy. Especially as I recalled the comments made yesterday by the blacksmiths. Now that I think about it¡­ is everyone in the craftsmen guild a blacksmith? That doesn¡¯t make much sense now, does it?


    Well, no matter¡­ What especially made me mad was what they said after I left the room with the nice receptionist¡­


    * * *


    ¡°I¡¯ll be looking forward to tomorrow~¡± he said in a very pleased tone. I, of course, nodded enthusiastically as we left the room.


    ¡°So they did that, huh¡­¡±


    ¡°They did¡­¡±


    ¡°Disgusting¡­¡±


    I absolutely had no idea what they meant or were insinuating for that matter. All I did was drag the guy into an empty closet¡­ Oh¡­


    ¡°I didn¡¯t do that!¡± I turned red.


    ¡°Do what?¡± Ari asked in confusion. Jer stayed silent, almost as if he knew what was going on.


    There was a brief silence due to my high-pitched scream, however, they just started whispering to themselves. I opened my mouth to refute, but before I could say anything I felt a cold sensation on my shoulder, it was Jer¡¯s hand. He quietly stood there and shook his head, essentially telling me it wasn¡¯t worth it.


    ¡°Now, now, guys. Don¡¯t be so hasty,¡± a blacksmith commented. ¡°She might¡¯ve been talking about the so-called blacksmith she wanted to bring.¡±


    ¡°Oh, you¡¯re right.¡±


    ¡°I would love to see this blacksmith in action, he must be renowned, although, I cannot think of any that fits her requirements.¡± They started laughing.


    I couldn¡¯t help but pout in annoyance, Ari and Jer consoled me by patting my back.


    * * *


    I shook my head in the deafening morning silence, I didn¡¯t have time to worry about such things, although there was something that bothered me.


    ¡°It¡¯s early.¡± The light piercing through the window had a blue hue.


    I rubbed my eyes to look at my surroundings, Ari was sleeping with me as usual. However, I couldn¡¯t help but tilt my head in confusion as soon as I failed to realize where Jer was. I mean, he was basically a giant armor, it couldn¡¯t have been that hard to find him in a room?


    I scratched my cheek as I glanced around, all I saw was a sculpture on the hallway of a medieval knight¡­ No, wait¡­


    With self-doubt, I carefully left the bed and made my way to the statue, the metal had a blue shine to it due to the light. I slowly extended my hand towards the armor, maybe it was made of some quality material. Suddenly I saw it slightly shake, making me freeze for a slight second before sighing.


    ¡°Do you sleep like that?¡± I whispered to him.


    ¡°... Old habits¡­¡± It looks like he wasn¡¯t very keen to respond.


    I shrugged and looked around the room, unable to find anything to do I stared out of the window, such boredom was unbearable. I could not wait any longer.


    ¡°I want to go¡­¡± I said with lethargy. Jer tilted his head.


    ¡°Go where?¡± His confusion was understandable.


    ¡°The forge, I had agreed to show up in the morning to be guided there.¡±


    ¡°Ah, so that¡¯s why the both of you went alone into the closet?¡±


    I stopped. ¡°W-What did you think we were doing?!¡±


    ¡°Nothing really¡­¡± He averted his gaze. I sighed.


    I thought for a second and looked back at him. ¡°What did Ari whisper to you?¡±


    ¡°Well, she said that you had sky-high standards and thought of rare items and below as disposable.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but remain silent, not being able to deny it or accept it was painful.


    ¡°How about I ask you now?¡± He gently suggested, I nodded. ¡°What¡¯s your relationship with um, blacksmithing?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s my life.¡± I answered in a monotone voice, Jer remained silent and waited a few seconds.


    ¡°Did you spare me to make me your slave? I know you¡¯ve said otherwise, but looking at you, I really get that idea¡­¡± He sounded pitiful all of the sudden. I grew flustered and shook my head.


    ¡°I-I, just thought a talking undead was interesting¡­ that¡¯s all¡­¡± I did not know what to say to him, could it be he is already having regrets about being resurrected?


    ¡°Being a monster is hard.¡± He sighed. ¡°Having to look at you is mentally tiring, maybe other people don¡¯t see it, but I do. I don¡¯t know what sins you committed, but they weigh heavily on your soul.¡± Ha?


    ¡°I don¡¯t need your pity,¡± my stern tone took him aback. ¡°If it¡¯s so hard for you to accept me as your master then a proper contract can fix the deal,¡± I suggested, of course, Jer stiffened.


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±


    ¡°Well, a summoning contract. If you see me as your master then my evilness-sinful-deeds shouldn¡¯t be perceivable to you.¡±


    Jer sat there in silence, thinking about his situation. He stood up and went to do some things, I stayed seated not really knowing what he was doing. A minute later he placed a sheet of paper on the table along with ink and a quill.


    ¡°Do it.¡± I, naturally, tilted my head.


    ¡°Just like that? No thinking about it? No, nothing?¡± I asked with extreme confusion, I was only answered with a single nod.


    With my unstable hand I dipped the quill and started writing a contract, basically stating that Jer was my belonging, acting on his own volition and following my absolute commands/orders, he will recognize me as his only master in a subconscious manner. Or something along those lines it said. Of course, the redaction was akin to a 10 year old, since I had no idea about proper punctuation, however, I can at least say that it was readable.


    After I finished, I looked at the paper with slight confusion, it was different from the Fifi contract, therefore it was my own custom contract; meaning I had to also have to use a different procedure. After thinking for next to nothing I took out the knife the dwarf made me.


    ¡°T-That is¡­¡± Jer stuttered as he gazed over it. Without paying attention I scratched my thumb with it and drew blood, smearing it all over my beautiful contract. It felt almost as if I was doing some type of witch-craft summoning ritual. Ouija board?


    I looked at Jer and he was in a state of shock. Seeing that he had no such thing as blood I got close to him with the contract, I placed it on his hand essentially giving it to him.


    ¡°W-Wait what are you doing?¡± He asked in a panic.


    ¡°Finishing the contract, of course.¡±


    ¡°B-before that, what was that knife you used?¡±


    ¡°This?¡± I asked as I took it out. ¡°It was made by the Capital¡¯s Craftsmen Guildmaster, it¡¯s great right?!¡± I said with slight excitement.


    ¡°It¡¯s¡­ perfect¡­¡± I nodded in agreement. ¡°I-Is that your quality standard?¡±


    ¡°I suppose.¡±


    He firmly looked at me.


    ¡°I Jermud will humbly serve under your name as you command, oh, Master!¡± What had gotten into him all of the sudden!?


    And his hand burnt¡­ No, wait¡­ the contract turned into cinder¡­ That was it¡­


    ¡°Is it done?¡± He asked with confusion.


    ¡°I think so¡­ more importantly, explain! A-And, what is this Master thing?! I am just Yami!¡±


    I looked at him with slight panic, what had gotten into him? Why would he act like that out of nowhere, why, when, where?! Too many questions, this was unusual!


    ¡°You see, from a young age I was taught that I was meant to follow someone in life, however, no matter where I went there was no one to follow. My mentor reassured me, telling me I would realize it when the time comes¡­ I think the time is now¡­¡±


    ¡°I see¡­¡± What¡¯s with that cliche story?! ¡°B-Besides, all you are seeing is a high quality item, no such thing as a divine revelation! Yo?¡ª¡±


    ¡°Ah, you people are noisy!¡± Ari yelled in a high-pitched tone.


    ¡°Morning¡­¡±


    ¡°Good morning¡­¡±


    We both greeted her in awkwardness as she groggily got to us, looking at us with confusion and trying to figure out what was the big deal. However, Ari did not notice anything special.


    ¡°I will just sleep¡­¡± She absentmindedly said as she walked back to bed, I did not expect her to even wake up. Mistakes were made.


    ¡°Keep it down, okay?!¡± She screamed to us across the room.


    After a brief pause, I looked back at Jer, who was looking away and into a wall.


    ¡°So, that¡¯s it?¡± I asked with disappointment as I attempted to keep my voice down.


    ¡°That¡¯s it¡­¡± He confirmed my disappointment.


    I dropped my shoulders. ¡°You didn¡¯t need to be so dramatic¡­¡± I laid on the couch with sadness washing over me. I thought he would speak of a legend or something. I don¡¯t know¡­ I just think he made such a big deal out of nothing, I mean, he was a hero in his time. Just because he saw a high-quality dagger it did not make me, you know¡­ ¡°The chosen one,¡± if you will.


    I stood up and looked at him right in the visor. ¡°Listen, I don¡¯t care if you think I am the chosen one, all I did was pull out a high-grade dagger, got it?¡±


    ¡°Got it¡­¡± He agreed in awkwardness.


    I felt a bit more at ease after his confirmation. The couch was feeling a bit comfortable before I knew it, I fell asleep¡­


    * * *


    I felt an odd warmth striking my back as well as a rhythmic humping, if you could call it that. Bouncing up and down, I slowly opened my eyes and immediately was blinded, having to close them again and carefully opening them. I quickly realized I was somewhere outside and the sun was radiantly shining.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    Where was I? What was this bouncing? I looked to my side, I was tall, so far away from the ground, it kind of gave me nausea, then I realized.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    ¡°You had agreed with the guy from the guild you would be there, no?¡± Jer gently asked me as he sighed.


    Jer was carrying me as if I was his daughter or something, he knelt and allowed me to get off from him. I felt warmness in my cheeks as people stared at us with curiosity, some were surprised others grabbed their chest as if it was a heartwarming moment. I couldn¡¯t make eye contact with anyone so I ended up looking at the ground as I walked.


    ¡°What happened to Ari?¡±


    ¡°She stayed in the room, saying something along the lines of: I don¡¯t feel well today, just let me rest¡­ Although I kind of feel like she just didn¡¯t want to come with you for whatever reason.¡±


    Ah¡­ I suppose she might be scared of what I do, yeah¡­ that reminds me that I should try to keep a low profile.


    ¡°I see, what will you be doing?¡± I asked Jer as I tilted my head. He looked back at me with confusion as if it was a silly question.


    ¡°I will be watching you make the armor, since you did say you could smith.¡± Yeah¡­


    ¡°Okay, that¡¯s fine. I suppose¡­¡± Jer tilted his head from my lack of security but we continued walking.


    It only took a few seconds for us to reach the guild, seeing everything was in the same plaza. Which kind of made me thankful it wasn¡¯t across the town or something, what if I hadn¡¯t woken up and Jer carried me all the way there?! That would be terrible.


    ¡°What is she doing?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ Hey, Yami we are here already.¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡± I lifted my head in confusion.


    The man from yesterday was looking at him with complete confusion washed on his face, I had been looking down as I held my head. Fantasizing about possible bad outcomes was bad for me.


    ¡°I am sorry¡­¡± I apologized as I scratched my head. ¡°Good morning¡­¡±


    ¡°Good morning¡­¡± The entire thing was totally awkward! ¡°I am Al.¡±


    ¡°Yami¡­¡±


    ¡°Ah well, now she is here. Let us go to the forge.¡± Jer intervened, essentially saving me from the awkwardness.


    ¡°And you¡¯re?¡± He turned back at him.


    ¡°I am¡­¡± He looked at me for help, I just nodded, he could figure it out.


    He took a brief pause, and I¡¯ll never forget what he said.  ¡°Her father.¡±


    ¡°¡±Eh¡­¡±¡± We both let out words of confusion.


    ¡°Haha¡­ Yeah, let¡¯s go¡­ F-Father¡­¡± I stuttered as I struggled to keep smiling.


    Al, on the other hand stood there frozen. His eyes widened and he approached Jer with security. ¡°Your daughter is very admirable, tell me¡ªwhat kind of things did you teach her? For her to become such a great smith, and more importantly, how did she start to want to do such things? Were you okay with it?!¡± He started interrogating¡­ How did he even buy it?!


    ¡°Em¡­¡± He looked at me for help.


    ¡°Ah sorry, he didn¡¯t know anything until it was already too late¡­¡± I interrupted, Al nodded.


    ¡°I see.¡± He looked at Jer. ¡°You sir, have a very respectable daughter, you should be proud!¡±


    ¡°... Yeah¡­¡± I could already sense the regret in Jer. Served him right to be honest.


    ¡°Well let us go.¡± Al gave a rough pat on the shoulder to Jer, and after that we started walking, following behind Al, he was weird to say the least, from what I could tell he seemed to care about the youth, and probably was happy to hear that I was a talented blacksmith or something along those lines, I don¡¯t quite get it.


    I shrugged as I thought about it. There was no point in overthinking it.


    ¡°So, where did you guys come from? I don¡¯t think you lots are from here.¡± Al asked in a friendly matter, Jer scratched his helmet.


    ¡°Um, we come from outside the capital¡­¡± I awkwardly said as I scratched my head, almost as if I was embarrassed about it.


    ¡°I see,¡± he dropped his shoulders. ¡°It¡¯s been rough¡­ Don¡¯t you think so as well?¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± I had no idea what he was talking about.


    ¡°To think it hasn¡¯t even been that long since the King was replaced and things are like this¡­¡± He looked around at the calm and empty streets with sadness.


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± I agreed like a dummy again.


    ¡°You know, I guess neither of you can understand it. This city used to be crowded with food stands, weaponry, more food stands and carriages, it was a flowering business. Everything was going so well¡­¡±


    He looked at the sky with a melancholic look. ¡°Then the news arrived¡­


    New king: Gazel defeats old King, survival of the fittest, it was quite unbelievable, but of course, we celebrated as our kingdom does. The strongest thrive and protect the weak, that¡¯s just our nature, things continued as normal. However, for Gazel it kind of just seemed as if things were off, he wasn¡¯t satisfied with how things were going. He thought someone was after his strength, maybe a necromancer? Who knows what one could do with such a powerful corpse.


    And so it began; law after law, restriction after restriction, until eventually it killed the economy, the adventurer¡¯s guild still does great since he cannot impose laws on them due to it being some sort of big network that does not benefit any nation. However, the other guilds struggle, even if they don¡¯t have the problem of laws imposed on them, they do suffer from the lack of trading. It¡¯s sad really¡­¡± He wiped a tear from his eye.


    ¡°That sounds awful¡­¡± Jer muttered.


    ¡°It is, although I assume you guys experienced something similar.¡± Al said with a bitter smile.


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± One-hundred-percent, totally, yeah¡­


    Although something was weird, I mean. Couldn¡¯t Aizen put him in his place whenever she wanted? Well, the bigger problem is that he is skeptical about everything based on what I heard. Also, doing such a thing to your villages is bad to say the least.


    ¡°So he is a terrible king?¡± Al stiffened as I said that, stopping in his tracks and leaning to my ear.


    ¡°Yes, but public slander can get you killed,¡± he paused. ¡°So, don¡¯t do it¡­¡±  I slowly nodded.


    We continued walking without talking much, there was a palpable awkwardness between me and Al now, I guess he got nervous from my question, I don¡¯t blame him¡­ I wonder how Aizen is doing? She should be doing fine, or at least I would like to think so.


    I thought about random things as we walked through the town streets, they weren¡¯t as wide as the capital¡¯s, nor as pretty or white for that matter. Although the town was in great shape and had general cleanliness, aside from the lack of foot-traffic. There was no street vendors unlike the capital, some shops were closed, in others you could see personnel doing mundane tasks as they had no clients.


    ¡°Is this a small town?¡± I asked out of curiosity.


    ¡°Well¡­ It is, although this was once known as the Trading Town of Zirconia ?¡ª Niyer!¡± he said with pride. ¡°Although that time has passed¡­¡±


    ¡°Em, didn¡¯t Zirconia disappear?¡± I asked with genuine confusion.


    ¡°No? I mean, I suppose it technically disappeared, since it became Sorinea and thus a nation was born ?¡ª the nation of Zirconia.¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± I let out a gasp of realization, IN ALL THIS TIME I HADN¡¯T HEARD THE NATIONS NAME.


    ¡°I am stupid¡­¡± I muttered to myself. ¡°I am stupid¡­ I am stupid¡­¡± I kept going¡­ ¡°I am stupid¡­¡± And going¡­ ¡°I am stu?¡ª ouch!¡± I was smacked in the head with something really hard.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know why you are muttering it, but I felt like I had to stop you.¡± Jer reprimanded me.


    ¡°Yes¡­¡± Although, I was still deeply upset.


    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t fight. We are almost there.¡± Al nicely informed us.


    I promptly lifted my head, I had just been following behind his steps without really paying attention to where we were going, I did not need much awareness to do so since the streets were fairly empty.


    ¡°We made it.¡± He said with a pleased voice as he waved his hand to the place.


    It was an open forge the only special thing about it was a small black sign that said ¡®obsidian¡¯ on it, so it wasn¡¯t that private. It was in the middle of the street as well¡­ How is that private?! Well¡­ I suppose it can be considered private if it¡¯s privately owned¡­ I think¡­


    ¡°That is¡­¡± I pointed at a booth right next to the forge.


    ¡°You can buy materials to work at the forge. There, you can even buy tools in case you¡¯re lacking.¡± He gave me a quick run-down of how it worked. ¡°And well, of course, to use the forge you need your guild registration.¡±


    ¡°Andd¡­ who is running it?¡± I pointed at it, it was completely empty, even the place was completely deserted.


    ¡°Ah forgot to mention, it¡¯s my turn today,¡± he said as he puffed his chest up with pride.


    ¡°I see¡­¡± I was a bit confused, but I guess it saved me from having to explain any more things.


    As I thought about it, Al moved behind the stand like an npc vendor, I stiffened a bit since it was the first time seeing such a monotone behaviour since I came here.


    Without thinking too much about it I approached the booth.


    ¡°Can I have twelve mithril ingots? And a hammer, tongs as well.¡± I said without care, he became confused.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t you have your own kit?¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± I made a bitter smile knowing what would happen if I used my own things on the mithril. Sure it sounds interesting, but I don¡¯t want to kill Jer, nor I want to die. ¡°Just give me what I asked for, okay?¡±


    He took a step back. ¡°Okay, so six mithril ingots?¡± I nodded, he seemed a bit stiff. ¡°That would total up to 12 cobalt coins.¡± I shrugged. ¡°I mean, mithril is really expensive, you know? 2 cobalt coins per ingot.¡±


    ¡°So¡­ how is it 12 cobalt-coins total, then?¡± Math just did not add up, whatsoever.


    ¡°Ah, fifty-percent discount from being an obsidian rank through the guild, and free blacksmithing kit for any obsidian rank smith,¡± he concisely explained. ¡°Although, I have no idea why they would use the guild¡¯s basic kit¡­¡± he muttered thinking I would not hear him.


    ¡°Right, sounds good.¡± I reached into my pocket and pretended to shuffle for something as I took a coin bag out. I rummaged through it until I found the brightest object in it and handed it to him.


    ¡°I see you¡¯re no pushover, huh¡­¡± he muttered as he received the mithril coin.


    ¡°By the way, how do you stop people from using the forge if it¡¯s open to the public?¡± I asked out of curiosity, he tilted his head in confusion.


    ¡°I mean, there are normally guards, but since there is no blacksmithing activity as of recently they have been doing other things, although as per rule there must be a guard when a blacksmith works here.¡±


    ¡°So? Can J?¡ª Dad be my guard?¡± I asked him with pleading eyes.


    ¡°Y-Yes¡­¡± Great! Jer seemed awfully stiff from hearing my pathetic girly voice, but¡­ it had to be done¡­


    Cough! ¡°More importantly, I need to go fetch the things you asked for, I will be bringing them on a cart, feel free to look around the installations. I will also be bringing your change¡± He left.


    I sat there quietly giving Jer a deadly stare.


    ¡°I had to do it!¡± he pleaded.


    ¡°Sure, whatever you say.¡± I turned around and started looking at the forge, I was upset to say the least.


    I didn¡¯t look much at the forge, it basically looked like some type of community thing, it had a back wall and the side walls were built until half-way through, so basically it was as if it was a split rectangle, it had a roof covering the entire construction. The back wall had furnaces that were already running, coal to each of the sides and a quenching tank next to each pile of coal.


    There were a bunch of two-horned anvils as well, one for each furnace, almost as if each of them were a mini-forge! I noticed grinder at the corner, it also had a chair, but that wasn¡¯t relevant! It was a grinding stone with a crank, I sighed, it was one of those tiring grindstones that murder your hands¡­


    My eyes widened as I observed it one last time, it had something very special about it. The crank was not directly connected to the stone wheel!


    It was connected to a big gear, that then connected to a small gear that was pivoted to an axle, this axle travelled across the entire frame and went into another big gear, before connecting to a small gear and going to the stone. I did not understand how many rotations I would get on the stone with a single crank at the crank¡­ Did I just? Well, anyway, the gear ratios were pretty nice, it basically meant I did not have to make much effort to make it spin decently fast. I was amazed.


    ¡°Impressive right?¡± I heard someone¡¯s voice behind me, turning around I found Al with a fully loaded cart. ¡°Someone a long time ago designed this wheel, it¡¯s amazing!¡± I bet. ¡°Here are your things, if you need anything you can find me at the bar. Also, about the mithril bar with manufacturing errors¡­  that one is free, so you get 13 bars instead. I will be leaving now.¡± He waved and left. .


    I was left with a pouch on my hand and a cart to my side. I opened the pouch and out of curiosity I looked inside; 8 obsidian coins and 8 cobalt coins. Maybe I was rich after all? No, I probably just got lucky...


    I looked at the cart, it indeed had everything I wanted along with the mithril bars, although one of them was just as big as two of bars, I suppose it was the one that went wrong, although it just seems like they used a different mold during the smelting. Although¡­ it was twice the quantity? Was it really free? Well whatever.


    I shrugged and started pushing the cart to the nearest furnace and got to work. It was nice, it barely rattled due to the huge wheels, everything was nice and tight at the bottom of the cart as well. I grabbed the tongs and froze seeing the mithril, it was so pretty, such a precious metal. Shining with brilliance¡­ Almost as if I was enchanted by it.


    ¡°I am sorry¡­¡± I muttered as I caressed it, I felt oddly emotional all of the sudden. Just the thought of making it borderline a crumpling stone when it had a magical dark-blue shine to it felt almost as if I was making a betrayal to the world¡¯s beauty.


    I sniffled quietly for a bit as I wiped my eyes desperately trying not to cry, it just felt bad doing such a thing to such a precious metal¡­ Even though the result was mesmerizing¡­ It felt as if I was destroying something that shouldn¡¯t be destroyed, it was a hard feeling. I felt guilty.


    As I trembled I felt a shadow cast over me.


    ¡°Do you need help, you seem to be struggling,¡± Jer gently offered.


    ¡°I-I am okay¡­ If you want to watch that¡¯s fine.¡± I gave him a weird crooked smile. ¡°I hope he didn¡¯t notice I was feeling bad about a piece of  metal... ¡° Thankfully my murmurs did not reach him.


    Jer wordlessly stood to the side and watched me work, or rather just watch me since I wasn¡¯t working yet, I guess maybe he was curious? I glanced at the the cart, it had a wide assortment of tools¡ª a few hammers, chisels of various shapes and the tongs I had just taken a hold of. I did not think I would need a different tool so it didn¡¯t matter.


    With a shaky hand I held the ingot in the tongs and placed it inside the furnace, all I had to do was heat it, not quite melt it. It was nice seeing the ingot kind of set ablaze as soon as it was placed inside?¡ªenveloped by the flames with their warm and candescent touch.


    ¡°Would it bother you to explain the process?¡± Jer suddenly asked.


    ¡°I mean, if you want I can explain it¡­¡± I absentmindedly said as I watched the burning ingot with a smile on my face.


    ¡°Please do.¡±


    I breathed in and out.


    ¡°The ingot has to reach a certain temperature to be malleable by my hammer, so I can do something with it. In this case I will flatten it into a plate and re-heat the plate to make the armor pieces using the anvil.¡±


    ¡°I see¡­¡± He probably didn¡¯t understand a thing¡­


    I kept watching the ingot happily, even though the smell made me want to cough, I completely forgot about it the more I focused on watching.


    ¡°So, can you tell just by looking?¡±


    ¡°I can feel it. I-If that makes sense¡­¡± I stuttered as I realized how stupid it sounded.


    ¡°I see¡­¡± Yep, he definitely did not understand me at all!


    I sighed and went back to looking at the mithril, it was no longer the bright white, instead it was a gentle orange. Shining and calling out for me ?¡ª it was ready, I was sure of it. Without hesitation I took it out using the tongs and placed it atop the two-horned anvil.


    I reached into my pocket and paused as I recalled what I last did with my hammer. I sighed in defeat and reached into the cart and grabbed the basic hammer, it was just a normal blacksmithing hammer made out of iron and wood for a handle. It felt oddly light in comparison to my other hammer, I would say my hammer was at least three-times heavier.


    With a bit of doubt I moved to hammer the mithril as I held it in place with the tongs.


    DINK!


    Ahhh¡­ It made that blissful metallic clink, music to my ears, or rather. I guess it would be a pleasure at this point, hmmm¡­ I noticed the metal deformed ever so slightly from being hit, I guess the hammer had enough mass to make an effect, since heating it with something that was too light would certainly not work.


    With refounded enthusiasm I started hammering with fervor, I wanted to make a mithril armor with that enchanting metallic glow that it possessed.


    DINK! DINK! DINK!


    One hit after another, singing a nice rhythmic song to my ears, it almost felt like art! It was slowly becoming flatter and flatter, one hit at a time, flattening it with the hammer and maintaining the metal over the anvil¡¯s face, it would¡¯ve been bad if I somehow slipped, so I had to keep that in mind.


    The metal was starting to lose its glow and becoming harder. Naturally, I did what any other experienced smith would do ?¡ª throw it back into the furnace ?¡ª reheat it. I waited a few seconds as I watched for it to reheat, I noticed a shadow casting next to me, I had forgotten.


    ¡°Ah, sorry¡­ I am reheating it since it needs to stay hot for me to work with it during this stage.¡± I concisely explained what I was doing, although I received no reply, I guess Jer was just appreciating what I was doing instead.


    I took the plate out again and started hammering once again; the clinking of the metal was music to my ears, it was relaxing and made me feel secure. Without even realizing it, I started humming.


    It was faint and melodic, although I did not realize it. I was enjoying myself, it felt great to work on something this often.


    I took the plate out of the furnace and moved it to the anvil, giving it a few love taps to flatten it decently. The plate wasn¡¯t very big, however, that wasn¡¯t an issue. Armor was made out of segments, so I could make small parts and at the end assemble it.


    Once it was flat I smiled, It was time to the most fun part, at least what I would say was the most fun.. ¡°I am going to start shaping the armor, or rather, a piece of it,¡± I informed Jer as he thought.


    I moved it to one of the horns. Horns were amazing, they allowed the smiths tog curve things while keeping it consistent, it was basically a mold in a way. Due to the shape of horns you could make broad curves or tight curves. I firmly pressed the metal on the horn and started hammering from the center to the outer parts. This allowed the curves to be gentle and not sudden, at least I believed it to be that way. There was no such thing as blacksmithing guide 101 anyway.


    The pleasant clinking was still there, although it was a lot slower and more consistent, having to make precise hits to not completely dent the metal while molding it. In this case I was making the armor¡¯s bracelet, or rather one of it. I still had to make everything else. I was far away from finishing it, but I was enjoying it.


    Hit after hit, it slowly was taking the shape I desired, or rather the one I was giving it. I did not reheat the metal because it became harder to mold as it cooled, it would normally be bad but it also made it harder to dent. So I could basically flex it along with the anvil¡¯s horn.


    It took a few more minutes of hammering but it was eventually finished, at least the shape of it. It was time to move into the next step: to remove the blemishes on the metal and all the imperfections I had left with my hammering. Seeing the metal was still hot I reseated it on the anvil and started giving it some taps to get rid of the dents.


    While it wasn¡¯t the best method to go about it, it was rather convenient. It would flatten the metal and leave slight signs of trauma on it, although it was nowhere near as noticeable as the dents. The process did not take long and it wasn¡¯t that satisfying since the metal clinking was a lot more quiet due to the carefulness I had to treat it with, although smashing something with a hammer was slightly entertaining.


    The metal was still hot, so I ran into a problem as I finished. I had to get ¡°rid¡± of the trauma on the metal, the slight dents that were left after correcting the more noticeable dents. The problem was that mithril did not need annealing, that wasn¡¯t a problem itself but you would normally grind after annealing, however, the mithril was still hot so I had no idea how it would go.


    I approached the grinder looking for a solution.


    ¡°Hmm... ¡° I thought for a second as I looked at the grindstone and the grinder itself, the gears were pretty and I even noticed the axle seemed to be oiled with something, almost as if it was lubricated. I got slightly excited thinking about how well it would spin, until I gave up. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s hot!¡± I disregarded my previous thoughts and brought the clearly hot metal to the grinder.


    Once I was close to the grinding stone I noticed something very weird. One side was rougher than the other, almost as if they both had different uses¡­ Although it was something I hadn¡¯t seen before I did not have to think much about it to realize what the true reason for it was.


    ¡°This¡­ just made things a lot easier¡­¡± I muttered with a grin.


    I sat down on the chair that was right in front of the grinder, I was still holding the metal plate with my tongs, I did not have nearly enough grip with the tongs to actually grind, it felt as if the metal would slip up. I naturally did what any lazy person would do. I re-adjusted my grip on the tongs to be closer to the tip, it was something dangerous, however, I did not want to get up and grab a different pair of tongs, or just a glove.


    I held the metal against the rough part of the grindstone and started cranking the lever, or the crank. I quickly realized that the gear ratios were ridiculous, it was spinning decently fast without giving it any real effort. Since the lever was decently large thanks to physics it also felt easier to turn.


    I pressed the metal against the stone, it was spinning fast enough that it started to throw sparks. I stopped spinning it from the unexpected behaviour and the potential risk, in the end I threw away the tongs and grabbed the metal with my right hand ?¡ª the gloved hand. It was mildly hot but it was not hot enough to set everything ablaze.


    ¡°Jer, start turning the lever!¡± I commanded.


    He tensed up for a second and sheepishly got closer to the lever and started turning it. He was surprised by how easy it was so he started going faster, and faster¡­


    ¡°Don¡¯t go so fast¡­¡± I said with a bit of nervousness, I did not want to know what would happen to my skin if it brushed against something going that fast. He did not keep going any faster but kept it at that deadly pace. I sighed and with a bit of doubt I pressed the metal against the rough side of the stone.


    It was a bit awkward to handle since I was doing it one handed, but thankfully since it was in the shape of a bracelet there was plenty of surface area to hold. It started throwing sparks yet again, however, I was prepared and angled the metal downwards, so all the sparks would be thrown to the ground.


    It felt nice to grind something so peacefully, after a few minutes I noticed the blemishes were gone.


    ¡°Okay stop.¡± I stood up. ¡°Now it¡¯s time to harden.¡± Jer had stopped spinning the stone, thankfully.


    I made my way to the furnace before I froze. I felt a bit unsettled, I felt nervous and insecure. Almost as if somebody wanted to kill me. I lifted my gaze and looked around, I quickly noticed the amount of people looking at me, almost as if I was something that they had never seen before. However, most of them had shock and awe in their face, now the threatening thing I felt.


    Then I noticed, there were also a lot of people looking at me with rage and hate¡­ I swallowed my saliva seeing some faces, most of the people in a bad mood were blacksmiths from yesterday.


    ¡°Em, hello¡­¡± I sheepishly waved at them with my free hand.


    There was a short silence.


    ¡°Don¡¯t: ¡®hello¡¯ us!¡±


    ¡°What are you doing here!¡±


    ¡°This is the wrong forge!¡±


    They all roared at me, making me take a step back, I was not used to being shouted at from anger. Anger was different from bloodlust, one felt hostile and the other felt hostile, but I just was not used to verbal hostility, at least not from blacksmiths. So it was an unusual experience for me.


    ¡°No response?! Don¡¯t get so over yourself!¡± He took a step into the forge before one of the smiths grabbed his hand.


    ¡°Hey! It¡¯s the obsidian rank only forge, if we get found out we could be in deep trouble!¡±


    He shook his fist. ¡°You expect me to believe she has permission!¡± He was pointing at me. ¡°I don¡¯t care anymore, I will be bringing her to the guards!¡± He started walking towards me, I did not know what to do so I took a step back in irrational fear.


    ¡°What are you?¡ª¡± Jer stepped in front of him.


    ¡°I am the guard on duty, she does have permission.¡± He calmly informed him.


    ¡°You are just his companion, how do you expect me to believe such a thing?! Move!¡± He tried to push Jer aside but of course Jer was like an unmovable statue.


    ¡°What is going on here?!¡± It was a familiar voice as I saw the crowd getting split. It was Al, his eyes widened seeing the ruckus that was going on.


    ¡°Al, the girl is using the forge without permission!¡± The person in front of Jer pointed out in anger.


    ¡°Em¡­ She does have permission, so how about you guys let her work and we can all watch together?¡± He clumsily suggested.


    The blacksmith paused in shock and nodded with a bit of difficulty, almost as if he was reluctant to accept it, even though he did not protest.


    ¡°You can go back to work,¡± Al signaled.


    ¡°Okay¡­¡± I sheepishly continued, although I started to feel nervous. I had not realized that everyone was looking ?¡ª all the blacksmiths, the nearby shop owners, even the people that were passing by¡­ I certainly wouldn¡¯t have done the ghetto method of grabbing it barehanded...


    I felt a hand on my shoulder, looking up it was Jer. Even though I could not see his eyes, he was looking at me, all I saw as an empty black visor, jet I felt a slight sense of reassurance. I realized I was not alone here and the fact that he could help me.


    ¡°I¡­ am going to stop explaining¡­¡± I muttered to him, he nodded and moved aside to let me work.


    With my new determination I made my way back to the furnace and stuck the metal back in.


    ¡°Is she working with mithril?!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s mithril right?!¡±


    ¡°Why is she reheating it?!¡±


    I heard gossip behind me, although something was off¡­ Didn¡¯t the dwarf guildmaster do the same thing? Or am I being silly? I mean, is there a specific way to do mithril? I shrugged my thoughts off and continued watching the metal inside the furnace. It had to get really hot.


    A few minutes passed and it was finally shining with candescent energy, I thought for a second before realizing it was getting close to its melting point, although the furnace shouldn¡¯t be able to hit the melting point, I think¡­


    ¡°Wow, it didn¡¯t melt¡­¡±


    ¡°It didn¡¯t¡­¡±


    ¡°Just how¡­¡±


    I heard some gossip, although I was thinking about the strange behaviour I had just seen in the furnace. As I wondered about it I took it out and submerged it into the quenching tank. Although, it wasn¡¯t quenching this time, it was hardening. Metals needed a lot of reheating and constant working, although mithril did not require annealing so it wasn¡¯t a problem. I just needed to make it harder.


    It let out a nice sizzling sound. I was hardening it. By making a metal reach a really high temperature and then submerging it into something like oil, it sends a shock through it due to the sudden changes, it essentially froze the particles/molecules¡­


    ¡°Haha¡­¡± I let out a dry laugh as I realized how ignorant I was to the process of blacksmithing, and such research is no longer available for me¡­ Sigh. Now that I think about it, what were they gossiping about? Ah right¡­ ¡®It didn¡¯t melt.¡¯ was it? I mean, was it supposed to melt? Does mithril store heat or something like that? Well, that would certainly make it fun to work with.


    I waited until the sizzling stopped, and took it out. Shaking the oil off, I threw it into the furnace again.


    ¡°She did it again¡­¡±


    ¡°Why¡­¡±


    ¡°If it keeps storing heat it will surely melt¡­¡±


    Looks like I was right¡­ I should probably thank them for informing me sometime, although seeing the Dwarf did not explain it to me while he gave me a walkthrough of his knife I suppose it was common knowledge. Good job me...


    I looked back into the furnace and it seemed to be extremely hot, hotter than ever. I took it out and had a troubled face to say the least. I was supposed to temper it at a lower temperature to relieve the pressure on the armor piece, however, it was hotter than before. This was definitely bad¡­


    Although I wonder how did the guildmaster do it? Didn¡¯t he do the same thing? Did he use some kind of trick or something? Huh¡­ Now that I think about it, didn¡¯t he just reheat it and maintain it at a constant temperature? I don¡¯t ever recall it being lower than usual, things I forget¡­ What a pain. I sighed and just imagined how the dwarf did it.


    Although he just stuck it in and out, I guess that retained the temperature? I began doing it and sure enough, I did not notice it get any hotter or cooler. I guess mithril just lost it¡¯s heat really quickly, but well, it didn¡¯t matter. I kept maintaining a constant temperature as well as I could, I did not have a thermometer to actually tell.


    This went for a few seconds, although I noticed everyone was completely silent. I continued doing my things, throwing it into the quenching tank one last time. It once again let out a nice sizzling. I took it out and moved back into the grinder, gesturing Jer towards the lever. He began spinning it. This time I used the smooth part of the rock.


    The piece of armor looked clogged, it wasn¡¯t clear per se. I grinded it with the smooth part and sure enough, I saw the white shine from mithril. The smooth side of the grind stone was for polishing, although I wonder if it was some type of special mineral, I mean, to be this reliable at things¡­ I wanted one.


    I absentmindedly polished the metal as I had fantasies with me having a grindstone, it was nice to imagine I had such a useful tool near me at all times, hehe~


    A few minutes went by and it was finally glistening in the dark blue hue, or whatever hue it was at this point. I kept confusing it¡­ It seemed to be fully finished, the gauntlet just needed to be pinned with metal, which I could do later.


    I finished working with a single ingot in about an hour, although thankfully it was early morning. At least not mid day, although I still had eleven ingots. I sighed seeing how many ingots I had left as I set the piece aside.


    ¡°That was impressive.¡±


    ¡°I guess she isn¡¯t bad.¡±


    ¡°Looks like a subpar obsidian smith to me.¡±


    They blacksmiths just kept talking among themselves as I moved myself to pick up another mithril ingot, I sighed once again and got to work. It was the same: heating, smashing, shaping with the anvil horn, removing blemishes, heating and hardening, heating and tempering, polishing.


    Before I realized another hour went by, and another piece was done. I took a look at Jer and looked at his armor, needless to say, I was feeling lazy. His visor was not damaged and even looked brand new, although it was dark, which did not combine well with the mithril. He had some type of dark chainmail below and it seemed mostly intact, although if he took the cloak off you could clearly see his ribs through the bottom of the chest piece. Thankfully his armor was a two part chest piece.


    I started carefully observing him, he became a bit stiff from my inquiring stare but did not move. I had to assess what I needed to do and didn¡¯t need to do, I was already feeling lazy from making two gauntlets. I did not need to make an entire armor.


    He needed new thigh pieces for both legs, an abdominal piece, and his back if I remembered correctly was fine. I grinned and gestured Jer to move closer.


    ¡°Hey, is it fine if I just make new pieces for the broken parts in your armor?¡± I asked him.


    ¡°Sure, I don¡¯t even see why you are going to such an extent for me¡­¡± he regretfully admitted.


    I did not reply to him and started working. I heated another ingot and repeated the same process.


    DINK!


    The metallic clink resounded once again, for some reason some people ¡®Ooh¡¯d¡¯ I didn''t quite get it, what was so impressive. I monotonously flattened the ingot and used the anvil horn. I looked back at Jer and his thighs, it felt a bit weird looking at someone¡¯s thighs but I had to at least eye-ball the measurements right.


    Thankfully I was great at eye-balling things, so it wasn¡¯t a struggle to shape the metal to cover half of his thigh, one for reach side, of the leg and then they would get fused together.


    Seeing mithril kept heat inside  it would be easy to melt and fuse together, for that I could probably use another ingot and use it as solder wire, or something.


    I kept looking at the folds of his thigh, at some point I realized he was slightly trembling, almost as if he was flustered, although I did not understand it. After some more careful viewing I finally visualized how the armor piece worked, it basically had two plates per leg, one outer and one for the inner thigh, each of them had slight folds instead of being completely curved, so it was almost like a square. They did have slight bending.


    Thankfully I realized as I had just started the shaping process. I took the sheet of metal and placed it on the edge and started curving it, I had made it a rectangle this time, I started hitting it on the side of the face, that way it would make it fold. Once that was done, I left it there and went for a broad chisel on the cart.


    I grabbed it almost as if it were a stake and started hitting the behind of it with my hammer with strength. This time I laid the sheet on the table part of the anvil, since I did not want to dent the face of it. I hit it hard and it went through, although the mithril was pretty soft. I basically started cutting the excess away since the shape was already done. However, it was definitely oversized for his thigh, therefore I gave it the shape of his current thigh-piece.


    ¡°What is she doing¡­¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen someone use that tool before.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen someone use it that way¡­¡±


    They were muttering nonsense now. I moved into the hardening by heating it again and cooling it down very quickly, it was weird since it was clearly hot but it got heated incredibly quickly. Although I do know now that mithril does have mana inside of it, could it be it also has some kind of heat memory? That would be weird but cool I suppose.


    As I thought about random things I started to do the tempering, it did not take long to get it to a constant temperature thanks to the quick-heating of the mithril and I left it in the quenching tank. I moved to make the other thigh pieces.


    I used the same method for every single one of them, for some reason it made everyone wow. Almost as if they hadn¡¯t seen my way of smithing before, it was definitely awkward but I did not let it deter me.


    I monotonously made all of the thigh pieces, it wasn¡¯t hard but it definitely took a while. This did not stop some of the smiths that were watching from making some comments although at this point no one was making negative ones, almost as if they had acknowledged something. Well, it didn¡¯t matter.


    I sighed as I finished the last piece, although none of them were grinded, so they all looked like a potato kind of. I started heating another ingot and had to start doing the bottom chest piece. Naturally I looked at Jer, except I couldn¡¯t see anything.


    ¡°Something wrong?¡± He asked.


    ¡°I need to see your chest piece.¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± He thought for a second and leaned close to me.


    ¡°Do you have some type of paper or somewhere where I can draw something?¡± I thought it was weird, but I had nothing, so I shook my head. ¡°That¡¯s bad¡­ Alright, you could see, although it would be quite awkward to show it to you here¡­¡± I nodded.


    ¡°Hey, how about you go away for a bit, and go back to the inn. There you take the chest piece off and bring it to me, just to clarify, I need the bottom one.¡± He thought for a second and nodded.


    He left leaving the crowd in bewilderment. I looked at Al, who was basically looking with almost as much attention as everyone, I hadn¡¯t stopped smithing so it was probably a weird sight to behold. I approached Al which made everyone get confused.


    ¡°Hey Al, my dad left to get some things, I am just informing you since you said I needed a guard.¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­¡± He thought for a second. ¡°If it¡¯s just a bit alone it¡¯s fine.¡±


    I started walking back to the furnaces since it felt comfortable there.


    ¡°Hey!¡± I turned around seeing someone called for me, it was one of the blacksmiths that was watching, he seemed a bit younger than all of them, although I could tell since all of them were wearing leather aprons, almost as if all they did was smith all day.


    ¡°I was wondering if you could¡­¡± He stopped. ¡°Teach me?¡±


    I thought for a second, teaching someone sounded fun, but eh¡­ ¡°No.¡±


    After my cold reply I felt the mood darken without reason, although I had nothing to say. I made my way to the only chair in the forge, it was of course, the chair next to the grinder. I sat there to wait, I noticed a few people stopped watching and went to do their things, although some people left and came during the entire process, it had been 6 hours and the sun was past mid day, it was actually time to eat, although I wasn¡¯t feeling hungry.


    I waited for a few minutes and Jer approached with awkwardness. He handed me a really heavy bag, it had the bottom chest piece and that was it. Although he was behaving weirdly.


    ¡°Hey,¡± He whispered into my ear.


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°Turns out, a lot of my bones are in a terrible state¡­¡±


    ¡°And?¡± He paused for a second, almost as if he was deciding if he should tell me or not.


    ¡°And turns out my armor supports a few of them¡­¡± I gasped for a bit. ¡°So, I am going to need a good chest piece.¡±


    I thought for a second. ¡°I see¡­ Although, can I ask how is it that you can stand if you basically lost support for your column?¡±


    ¡°Em, Ari helped me by putting a long and thick stick to support me, although it feels weird and I don¡¯t like it¡­¡±


    ¡°I-I see¡­¡± I thought about something really weird for a second and looked at his lower chest piece.


    In the meantime Jer sat down on the chair.


    The piece had the same type of fold like the thigh pieces, except this one curved around behind the back and then was dented inwards, almost as if it was following the column¡¯s shape. Which made me realize why he mentioned it. It was completely torn and it was missing one side entirely. It was somewhat big too, I noticed it dug into the chest piece with a pointy edge into it and then into the crotch area as well, it was definitely weird.


    I observed it with curiosity and thought about the best way of making the parts.


    I started by heating an ingot and following the same shaping process, this time I made a big rhombus, the perfect shape! Thankfully the badly manufactured ingot came to the rescue. It kept the thickness consistent with the other pieces as well as just being overly big.


    I made the square and split it diagonally from corner to corner by setting it on the edge of the face as usual. Once I was satisfied with the result I moved into curving the outer edges with the horn, this time I was starting from the inside to the outside, so it was a bit weird.


    However it looked pretty consistent, I moved into the hardening and tempering, it was a bit tiring having to stick things in and out of the furnace to heat and reheat, I also felt the same with the oil tank, thankfully it was decently sized so I could fit most of the things, normally they were slim but this one was big.


    I finished half of the inner chest piece and grabbed another ingot and got to work. This time I just made it a rectangle and folded it with the face of the anvil once again after taking it out of the furnace, however, I held the fold away from me so that it was pointing outwards, then I placed it on the horn and started to curve the sides, the fold was facing towards the ground.


    After curving both of the sides it kind of looked like an open book just judging from the contour, although it was how it was supposed to go. I heated it once again and quenched it in the tank, then I heated it and started taking it in and out, again¡­ I was getting extremely tired yet there was still people watching¡­ Haa¡­


    I finally finished and looked at all of the pieces that needed polish, I was pretty annoyed and wanted to get this done with, so, I wasted no time and got to sorting the pieces, inner thigh with outer thigh, making pairs and I had three sets of pairs. Then I thought about how to fuse them and decided that I would melt an ingot.


    ¡°But then that would mean, I would need to¡­¡± I muttered. ¡°Ah, whatever!¡±


    I dispelled my concerns in annoyance, having to melt the ingot and then somehow connect the pieces using the molten metal would be extremely troublesome even if I connected them, since I would need to file away all the excess metal or something, but at this point I could not be bothered to think about a solution.


    I looked around the forge and found what I was looking for, a decently big ceramic crucible, although it could not fit an entire ingot. I sighed in defeat as I heated another ingot, then I hammered it a bit and chopped a side from it using my stake, I mean chisel.


    I placed the small piece I had cut on the crucible and moved said crucible into the furnace, meanwhile I tossed the ingot into the quenching tank, it went in and started sizzling.


    ¡°DID SHE LOSE IT?!¡±


    ¡°WHAT DID SHE JUST DO?!¡±


    ¡°Relax, she knows what she is doing!¡±


    ¡°I hope so¡­¡±


    Smiths started to freak out, I would¡¯ve freaked out if I treated a metal like trash, but I was just tired and annoyed, it had taken more time than what I thought it would. No, I knew it would take that long, I just did not have the patience for it¡­ Sigh.


    I waited on the crucible to get the mithril to melt, something curious about it is that the furnace did not need to be extremely hot, I realized mithril just accumulated heat, although I wonder how long it took to forget it, since it was a material with memory, just like paper. It remembers the changes made to it in a sense.


    It took a few minutes but it finally had molten liquid, people were confused and thought I was smelting. I took the crucible out with my tongs and set it on the ground then I thought about how to hold the armor pieces together to throw a bit of liquid on them. Hmm¡­ What a problem, just as I thought it wouldn¡¯t work¡­


    I sighed in defeat. ¡°Who wants to help?¡± The young boy from earlier raised his hand, I waved him over.


    ¡°W-What can I do?¡± He nervously asked as he trembled.


    ¡°Okay, I am going to need you to look for a way to hold the armor pieces together so I can pour the melted mithril on top of them.¡±


    ¡°Wha¡­ Why?¡± I sighed.


    ¡°Just do it and you will see.¡±


    He reluctantly nodded and went away, I saw the crucible was getting cool so I kept sticking it in and out of the over to keep it at a nice temperature for me to use it. Eventually the boy came back with some bricks. It did not much thinking for me to realize what he wanted to do with them. He set them on the ground spaced from one another, and set the armor in between, carefully lining it up and tightening the bricks to the sides.


    Almost like a clamp, except it was a terribly bad version of one. He did so for all pieces.


    ¡°Now, what are you going to do?¡± He asked once again.


    ¡°Just watch.¡±


    I breathed in and out and focused on the crucible, I started pouring a small thread of molten metal on the part that the armor connected to one another, I could¡¯ve used rivets or something else entirely but I could not think of anything else at that moment, and of course.


    ¡°She is ruining them!¡±


    ¡°She definitely lost it.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what to say.¡±


    They thought I was ruining the armor, I would¡¯ve thought the same as well, I started keeping the warmth of the crucible so it would not turn into solid mithril, I bet I looked pretty dumb by using the technique of taking it in and out repeatedly, I did not think it was close to my best work at all, but it was a learning experience.


    I observed the pieces as my muscle memory took care of taking the thing in and out. The boy was confused and observed as well, and surely enough as anyone expected it solidified and connected the pieces. I gestured him to turn them around, he wordlessly did and I did the same action of pouring mithril over them once again.


    I noticed some people sighed and left, almost as if I had ruined whatever I was doing, but I guess they forgot I could just grind the excess and polish it, and it would almost make a flawless transition due to it being mithril. Thankfully the gauntlets did not need me to do this since they were kind of a slot-in thing.


    I set the crucible aside and watched it cool down.


    ¡°Um, what¡¯s your name, if you don¡¯t mind me asking?¡± The boy looked at me.


    ¡°Y?¡ª Dark Shadow the blacksmith.¡± I made a bitter smile as I said it, he cheerfully nodded.


    ¡°Thank you for your teachings! I feel like I have learnt a lot watching you, I will work hard to become an obsidian blacksmith and maybe even be able to work under your wing one day!¡±


    ¡°... Sure¡­¡± I did not know how to tell him that I don¡¯t plan on staying here¡­


    I looked at the armor once again. ¡°Oh it¡¯s done.¡± I said with a pleased tone and took all of the pieces with a bit of the struggle, I moved them towards the grinder. Jer was still sitting there and watching with curiosity, he was about to stand up but I put my hand in front of me.


    ¡°Just spin while you are sitting.¡± He nodded and started spinning the thing as I grinded, I did not pay attention but all the sparks were going into his visor, some people were horrified. I did not notice¡­ and well¡­ he just didn¡¯t seem to care either.


    I continued grinding the excess of the molten mithril and noticed the connection seemed incredibly strong, then I realized that the mithril had gotten hot around the edges and connected itself, it felt almost as if everything went my way but I had just discovered a mithril welding technique. I grinded and grinded, and they were finally smooth and looked like single pieces, although they still did not look shiny.


    Then I switched sides and started using the polishing part of the stone, it slowly but surely got the glistening white, and it started to reflect the sunset. I had finished just in time. I heard a faint scream in the background but I did not notice as I happily grinded.


    ¡°There you are¡­¡± I heard a familiar voice next to me, turning around it was Ari, the boy was just as confused. ¡°Neither of you told me you would be gone the entirety of the day¡­¡±


    ¡°Ah sorry¡­ But look what I made!¡± I showed the last piece, it was shining in an almost pearlescent white.


    ¡°Sigh, I mean¡­ I guess? I love how it looks, but you made it, so¡­ to be expected?¡± So cold¡­


    ¡°Em, who is she?¡± The boy pointed at Ari.


    ¡°My sister.¡± I said without thinking, Ari blushed a bit and the boy nodded.


    I noticed the crowd of people started to gather once again, some people were pointing at the armor almost as if it was majestic. Al had just arrived from the bar or wherever he was and his eyes widened, a bead of sweat dripped down his forehead and he left in an almost olympic sprint. I couldn¡¯t help but be weirded out.


    I looked at my work once again; the multiple pieces of armor. I smiled with satisfaction.


    ¡°Well, Jer, does this seem good?¡± He nodded.


    ¡°More than good.¡± I smiled.


    ¡°Alright then, time to encha?¡ª¡±


    ¡°Wait!¡± Al arrived from his sprint.


    I couldn¡¯t help but be confused as I took a step back, he had come out of nowhere and he was all sweaty, I was confused to say the least.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°I-I brought someone.¡± He pointed at the distance from the street, to the horizon.


    I saw a silhouette calmly approaching, it seemed pretty normal, except for¡­ Oh¡­ The silhouette got closer and closer, it was a man with golden hair, wearing glasses and a full on butlery outfit, except instead of being black and white it was brown and white. His long ears slightly trembled from the wind but his face remained serene as ever.


    It was an elf.


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± Ari let out her insatisfaction, we have had nothing but bad experiences with elves, it almost felt like a bad omen.


    He arrived at our side. ¡°This is the town¡¯s enchanter, his name is classified due to reasons.¡± I see¡­


    ¡°Nice to meet you, he extended his gloved hand at me. I shook his hand with my right hand, and that was it. ¡°I see, weird. What do you have here? Such unique armor, do you mind if I enchant it?¡±


    ¡°I-I¡­¡± I went silent, was it a yes or no? What would happen if I said no¡­ I wanted to enchant it¡­ ¡°I suppose, is it free?¡± he laughed.


    ¡°Just this once it will be.¡± I nodded.


    He took his gloves off and knelt on the ground, he kind of looked like a gentleman but I was still uneasy. He touched all of the armor pieces and closed his eyes. ¡°Oh god, please hear me. I shall obey your will, just let me see the true nature of these items.¡± I had never heard an enchanter before.


    I saw him shake once for a moment, and then he stood up and opened his eyes. Then he started trembling.


    ¡°Legendary¡­¡± he muttered.


    ¡°What?¡± Al asked since he couldn¡¯t hear.


    ¡°The armor is Legendary¡­¡± He said with regret.


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± Just legendary?! I USED MITHRIL!


    Oh, well, that was good enough I suppose. He turned to me with a complete serious face, no trace of his gentle smile, his eyes were cold. The bad omen had come.


    ¡°As per rule of the kingdom, I will have to take this armor. Legendary items are meant only for the royal family.¡± Eh¡­


    ¡°WHAT?!¡± I shouted, I did not just work more than 6 hours for it to be taken away!


    ¡°Are you perhaps, resisting?¡± I felt threatened....


    Alice.


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 (Chpt. 81) Lies and deception

    Alice.


    ?Aizen?


    ¡°Heeey, remember how I saved your life?¡±


    ¡°Oh no¡­¡± Long time no see Dan. ¡°What is it this time?¡±


    ¡°Well you see, I was wondering if you could do me a favor.¡± Dan thought for a second.


    ¡°So you mean you want something.¡±


    ¡°Pretty much,¡± I admitted it


    ¡°Sigh, shoot.¡± Dan was defeated, that was fast.


    I smiled.


    ¡°So there should be a church around the capital.¡±


    ¡°Aha.¡± He urged me to keep going with his eyes to keep going as he drank some water from a pitch.


    ¡°And so¡­ I wanted to become a member!¡±


    ¡°PFF!¡± He spit his water. ¡°You what?!¡±


    ¡°Well, you heard me.¡±


    He paused for a second. ¡°That¡­ Well, how do I put it¡­ Why?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯d be fun,¡± I said with an ear-to-ear smile.


    ¡°Okay then¡­ That¡¯s it?¡± He sighed.


    ¡°Well, yes.¡±


    Dan stayed silent as he looked at the surface of his desk with a lost look, I didn¡¯t really know what to think about it.


    ¡°Okay, and what will you do if you get a position?¡±


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s only for me to know.¡± I smiled.


    ¡°Sigh, okay you win.¡± He dropped on his chair. ¡°Just, don¡¯t blow it up like the castle.¡±


    ¡°... I don¡¯t know about that one chief¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t¡­¡± I nodded.


    ¡°Alright, looks like we have our agreement.¡± I nodded once again. ¡°So, let us get started.¡±


    He sat up-right.


    ¡°Tell me, do you place your faith in the divinity?¡± His tone was dead serious, I became a bit stiff from the sudden 180.


    ¡°Y-Yes.¡± Was the divinity something the church believed in? I need to keep that in mind.


    ¡°Good, then sign here and here.¡± He pointed at a piece of paper.


    ¡°Okay, but how? I see no pen or coal or anything for that matter¡­¡±


    Dan smiled. ¡°Blood will do.¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­ Is this like a blood pact thing?¡±


    ¡°No, just for the novelty of it.¡± Ha.


    I sighed.


    ¡°Fine, you got me this time! And only because it¡¯s original...¡± I bit my finger with my little fangs, or rather what remained of them, it was slightly painful but I kept biting. A sharp sensation ran through my finger, without a second thought I plastered it on the page.¡±Done.¡±


    Dan was frozen. ¡°That was a joke¡­¡± God damnit Dan¡­


    ¡°Well, whatever the deed is done.¡± I wiped my finger although it kept bleeding, but nothing too bad, besides what would I be if I flinched from my bleeding finger? ¡°Although, I will get my revenge, Dan.¡±


    Dan froze for a second. ¡°... Right¡­ Anyway, it is done, now wait a second.¡± He went under his desk and rummaged for a bit. ¡°Here, take this and go to the cathedral.¡± It was a white tunic.


    I thought for a second. ¡°Where is the cathedral?¡±


    ¡°Right¡­¡± He paused for a second. ¡°So, you know the castle, you know the noble district and since you are here, hmm¡­¡± Was it that hard to give directions? ¡°Okay, so you entered the capital for the first time through the south gate, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes¡­¡± Could it be?! Dan is bad at directions¡­


    ¡°So, the capital is divided into three main roads, which is the noble residential area, the main central road or whatever and the other one.¡± Aha. ¡°Anyway, just walk on the left path, was it a pedestrian area?¡± He paused. ¡°Ah, whatever¡­ Just take that path and if you keep going straight you will end up getting to the cathedral, it¡¯s white with golden ornaments.¡±


    ¡°Just like the capital¡­¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± Wow, helpful¡­ ¡°So do I just dress up in these rags and show up there?¡± I started walking towards the door.


    ¡°Pretty much.¡±


    ¡°Dan¡­¡± I looked him straight in the eye as I opened the door... ¡°If you¡¯re lying to me, this time I won¡¯t let you off easy.¡±


    ¡°... Yeah¡­¡± Sweat dripped down his forehead. He wiped it. ¡°You already got what you wanted, now go away, I have to finish my work!¡±


    ¡°Says the person that I met while they were taking a random vacation¡­¡±


    ¡°That is?¡ª¡± I shut the door.


    ¡°Sigh¡­¡± I looked at the white thing Dan gave me. ¡°I am not going to wear these¡­¡± I muttered as I put them away, I did not want to look like some type of nun that wears all white¡­


    I sighed yet again and dejectedly walked down the path of shame (going down the stairs as I look at the ground). The adventurers looked at me with a bit of awkwardness.


    ¡°W-What if she gets revenge on me?!¡± I stopped in my tracks as on a stair, I had heard something interesting.


    ¡°Relax, there is no way she is resentful she looked like an angel.¡±


    ¡°B-But, I forced her into giving me her identity!¡± She breathed heavily. ¡°A-And her name was Dark Shadow, can¡¯t it be any more ominous!¡± Aa-aah, so that¡¯s how it is for now.


    ¡®Kuro took a quest and left, so I should do something interesting as well. Actually, I was already going to do so, but let¡¯s¡¯ add a bit of a twist. I wonder what I could d?¡ª


    ¡°I am telling you to calm down, she was too busy protecting a little girl, there is no way she¡¯d do something to you, it¡¯s not like she had a bodyguard for the girl.¡± Oh, so that¡¯s how it is.


    ¡°Thank you¡­¡± I silently muttered as I finished my eavesdropping, people were looking weird at me so I had to move.


    ¡®So I guess I will go look for Fenri, probably in the mansion¡­ No, he is in the mansion, he gets groomed and fed, of course he would like to be there.¡¯ I exited the guild and backtracked my way to the mansion.


    I was greeted by the guard as usual and went upstairs, the first thing I did was go to Cecil¡¯s room.


    ¡°Woof?¡± He looked at me in confusion as he snuggled in bed all alone, no one was here but him.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go have some fun.¡± I smiled, Fenri quickly realized what was happening and dropped back to the ground, he stretched like a dog and then happily wagged his tail next to me, eyeballing me with those puppy eyes of his.


    ¡°Want to play God for a bit?¡± I asked with a smile, and of course, he looked at me with excitement. I grinned seeing how great this was going so far, if I bring Fenri with me seeing he is wearing some really fancy items that practically make him look majestic (when he doesn¡¯t act like a dog), I have this in the bag.


    Without telling Fenri anything, or without telling anyone anything we left the mansion. The guard gave us his farewell, although all we did was wave. We walked, as usual, nothing really happened until we got to the main plaza, then people started pointing and staring as usual. How do people live like that? Or rather, I know why they point and stare, but still¡­


    I sighed once again as we entered the residential area? What was it, middle-class area? Everything looked pretty normal, houses and a few stands here and there, although I did notice that there were more inns and vendor stands, and less actual shops. I continued walking, although the foot-traffic wasn¡¯t anywhere near as dramatic as in the main street or whatever it was, I guess it really was a residential type area? I sighed and continued walking, although there was a trend I noticed.


    People became a lot more, ¡°tidy¡± the more I walked, Fenri was too busy being a dog or something, since I did not see him move or act differently, although I didn''t truly understand what was going on in his mind sometimes.


    One thing was nice though, the color of the houses wasn¡¯t eye-catching, or rather, eye-blinding, although I only noticed such a trend on the castle and the noble streets as well as in the walls, I guess making everything white is not as easy as the king would like it to be, although I have a feeling it is simply because he can¡¯t afford it. Well, it was good for me, it spared my eyes.


    ¡°Hey, girl are you lost?¡± Some thug looking guy said from afar, while it sounded fun I just ignored him. I had greater plans.


    We continued walking, which seemed to make him confused, thankfully he did not come after me, maybe he was genuinely concerned? I will never know, not like I cared.


    After quite a bit of walking, I had gotten bored and was looking at the ground. ¡°How long is this going to take?¡± I asked myself as I raised my head. ¡°Oh.¡± It wasn¡¯t going to take that long after all.


    There I saw it, it was a cathedral, nothing out of the ordinary, the building was exceptionally huge and it looked almost as big as the castle, it was definitely taller than the castle, with its pointy towers, big and spacious arches running around the entire structure and golden ornaments on everything that was slightly pointy, corner? Sure why not, spike, sure why not. Even the windows had gold on the borders, it was quite obnoxious actually.


    Fenri looked at me with slight confusion, but I grinned, I am sure he had no idea as to why I wanted to come to the church, but well, I thought I could make something fun happen. Although as for now, Fenri would have to guess.


    I happily continued walking towards the eye-burning cathedral, it had gates and all. It was weird, it had knights although they had white armor and white weapons, so much for white, eh? I guess I should try wearing the tunic?


    I sighed in defeat and stopped in my tracks, I went into a dark alleyway, it seemed to continue going into a network, although I guess the slums are in between all the buildings? Weird design but okay. I stopped and took out the thing that Dan gave me, I sighed in defeat yet again.


    ¡°Now to¡­ Hmm¡­¡± I started thinking, should I leave my clothes on or not? Well, I was still dressed with the robe I was given, I suppose it would look weird to keep it on. I sighed yet again and removed my robe, it felt weird seeing it was so comfy, all that comfort taken away. Without thinking twice about it I started putting on the other robe Dan gave me, although it was a tunic, they seemed pretty similar to me.


    One arm in, and then the head, and then the other one? I was starting to get used to clothing, or rather, to dressing up. I never really changed clothes aside from very few times back in those days. Well, the past is far behind now, huh? I was completely dressed, it felt weird. I was sure Fenri was looking at me funny.


    I looked at him, his attention was somewhere else. ¡°Fenri?¡± aand he started growling, I looked in the direction he was looking. There they were, one was the thug that asked me if I was lost, his arms thin as bone and wet unkempt clothes, the other guy was in a similar state, I wonder what happened to them.


    ¡°Well, well, well, if it ain¡¯t one of those stupid church servants?¡± Em, what? ¡°It¡¯s because of you people that we can¡¯t live as we want!¡± I was stone-faced... ¡°Tch, I am going to teach you a lesson!¡± He pulled a knife, although he was stopped by his friend¡¯s hand before he could do anything.


    ¡°Think about it, we are only here to take her money, not to kill her!¡± He tried reasoning.


    ¡°You heard him girl, hand over your money.¡± He waved his knife around.


    ¡°Well, I have no idea what your problem is, but I suggest to let me go, I am not feeling murderous today.¡± I nonchalantly informed him, I also had no money, but that was beside the point.


    He stopped for a second before turning bright red. ¡°Let¡¯s see who is feeling murderous today then!¡± His friend stiffened and pulled out a dagger as well, I guess they were committed.


    ¡°I¡¯d advice against it¡­¡± I said as they approached me, Fenri looked at me with a bit of confusion, I guess I wasn¡¯t Kuro to him. ¡°Don¡¯t do anything, just stay put.¡± And so I commanded Fenri.


    He moved out of the way as both men rushed me with their little and pathetic daggers. One horizontal swipe, which was dodged by my crouch, his friend came from his side and lunged himself at me with his dagger at my slightly broken posture. I dodged sideways, I was no stranger to following blade movements.


    ¡°Why do you have it to make me do this¡­¡± I muttered in defeat.


    ¡°All it takes is for you to die, and then I¡¯ll come after your family just like the church did to mine!¡±


    ¡°I wouldn?¡ª¡± I was interrupted by a pitiful attempt to stab me. ¡°At least let me finish talking¡­¡±


    ¡°There ain¡¯t no talking for the dead.¡± He swiped again at me, I guess he really wanted it.


    ¡°If you put it that way then¡­¡± I dropped my shoulders, if I had to defend myself then I guess I¡¯d like to have a little fun. ¡°I guess I can test that¡­¡±


    I was once again swung at, his friend also joined in this time, making coordinated attacks and a bit hard to dodge. I got a bit of breathing room as they slowed down from moving too much, their stamina was running out. I smiled and focused on the gauntlet. I wondered what it could actually do, well according to the description it¡¯s kind of a shapeshifter. I supplied mana to it.


    ¡°Oh, wow, that¡¯s a terrible feeling¡­¡± It didn¡¯t feel good, but I noticed the scales shined gold for whatever reason. The thugs froze at the weird sight, I had paused as well, although it did not take long before they tried to attack me once again.


    In my stupid distraction, I saw the aggressive thug already on me. In a panic I closed my eyes and swiped almost as I still had claws, it felt as if I had missed, although I heard a horrible crunching sound. I opened my eyes, the scales were golden and bloody, they were completely soaked. My vision focused on the floor, all red¡­ The remaining person was flabbergasted and froze in fear. I felt a burning sensation on my opposite arm.


    ¡°What did I d?¡ª¡± I was interrupted by a shriek of horror, the person ran away. I was still slightly confused, I inspected my surroundings. ¡°Oh no¡­¡± I worded my regret. Dismembered parts on the ground and an unrecognizable corpse. Humans were fragile¡­


    ¡°You didn¡¯t need to do that!¡± I exclaimed as I looked at Fenri, but alas, he was completely clean. I was the one that had done it, without even realizing it. I had even failed to acknowledge that I was the one that had killed him.


    I placed my hand to cover my eyes, I did not want to cry. Such a disappointment was painful, it was unexplainable, my lips quivered. ¡°Why¡­¡± I hopelessly muttered.


    ¡°Girl, are you okay?¡± Someone behind me asked, for a strange reason I was filled with anger.


    ¡°Do I look okay to you?!¡± I shouted. I had done yet another mistake, how many of them left?


    ¡°Oh my goodness¡­¡±


    ¡°Oh god¡­¡±


    Bystanders started to pile behind me, I felt as if my heart had frozen, as if everything was going to come to an end, just for a stupid plan.


    ¡°I can¡¯t deal with this¡­¡± I muttered as I took a seat and leaned on the wall, the ground was still bloody, but it didn¡¯t matter. I had done it, and now I had to pay the consequences, the least I could do was accept fate.


    I wordlessly looked at the ground, waiting for my fate to come, would I be arrested for killing someone? Would something else happen? I heard some conversations going on in the background, some directing their voice at me, but I did not reply. I don¡¯t know how long I spent looking at the ground, but eventually, everything faded to black.


    * * *


    I slowly opened my eyes, I was alone in a dimly lit room by a single candle. I noticed something like a warm pile of fiber next to me. I froze for a second, it was breathing, or rather¡­ It was Fenri and he was sleeping. I was confused. How was I here?


    I stood up by placing my hand on the surface I was on, only to discover that I was in a warm and fluffy bed. The ceiling stood tall, and the entire room was well-furnished with a table and chairs, and there were two doors, one with lights and one without. The candle was waving it¡¯s uneven light, I turned to it, it was a small oil lamp sitting on a table with a folded piece of paper. I looked around the room once again, I was alone with Fenri. With no other choice, I grabbed the note.


    ¡°Take a bath, it¡¯s already prepared and waiting. We know you might be altered from the events that happened. Everything will be explained afterwards.¡±


    ¡°Em, what¡­¡± I muttered in confusion, everything was just so unexpected and random. I thought for a second and recalled what happened afterwards, in an instant my mood plummeted.


    I moved myself from bed, the clothes I was wearing fit my very loosely for some reason. I sighed and made my way to the door that had light coming from underneath, there had to be people there, right? The room did not have windows so I had no idea where I was nor what time it was.


    I opened the door. ¡°Hey, if you are going to kill me just do?¡ª¡± I paused as a warm air struck my skin. It was the door to the bath. I dropped my shoulders in disappointment. As I was about to turn around I saw a mirror, and noticed something.


    I got closer and placed my hand on it, looking at myself, I didn¡¯t feel like I was looking at myself. Downcast eyes, unconfident mouth, my clothes were hanging and I also had a bandage that was stained red running on my left arm, was I this¡­ frail girl? Was this all I was? I am no dragon, but I don¡¯t want to be miserable either. I thought about it for a few minutes.


    I had killed someone, but was that a reason to also die? Was it a reason to be so disappointed in oneself? Sure, I wasn¡¯t supposed to kill someone, but mistakes happen. Mistakes happen¡­


    ¡°Sigh, I should just stop thinking about it.¡±  I looked around and remembered the note. ¡°If I was meant to be killed, it would¡¯ve happened already I suppose¡­¡± With a much more relaxed and carefree attitude I removed the robe I was wearing and set it on a little table inside the bath. The robe was comfy but it was kind of oversized.


    As I was about to enter the tub that was in there I froze. ¡°Where is my gauntlet?¡± I sprinted out of the bathroom in panic, I couldn¡¯t afford to lose something like that. Or my clothes for that matter. As I frantically searched I looked at Fenri and realized something. He was laying on top of an object, I got closer and realized that he was lying atop a rather familiar set of clothes and well¡­ the gauntlet. I sighed and went back to the bath.


    My heart was beating fast, the mere thought of losing the things that Kuro had given me was terrifying. It was something I should avoid at all costs.


    I stood with bewilderment inside the bathroom, the situation was chaotic, I truly had no idea what had happened. I normally would¡¯ve bust out the door, but I was feeling mentally drained. Bath seemed relaxing, or rather, it was alluringly relaxing. It made me question if the place I was in was to be trusted.


    I shook my head. ¡®What, am I thinking? Fenri is here, I am sure if they had ill intentions he would¡¯ve done something already.¡¯ I relaxed my shoulders and looked around the bath, I had to at least get familiar with the room, the last thing I wanted was to get into the bath not knowing where something was.


    A pair of towels next to the sink, the room was quite small and had a full wall mirror next to the bathtub. The tub itself was built along the wall, so it wasn¡¯t portable. It was actually quite fancy with carvings running across the entire thing. I noticed a weird trend, it had wings and lines of something that seemed like air, except there was no such thing as an angel. It had swords or other weapons in general.


    I did not think much of it, seeing I had no idea where I was in the first place. At least I knew that if I was supposed to die it would¡¯ve happened already. I relaxed my entire body and sank into the steamy bathtub, the warm sensation overwhelmed my body, it almost felt as my hands and feet were burning; they were cold.


    I saw nothing akin to a soap, nor something like a body wash, nor a liquid to poor on myself. Although the water in the tub already seemed to have some type of mixture, seeing it was bubbly and foamy. I took the liberty to wash my back with its non-existent wings and my extremities without rush.


    ¡°Ouch¡­¡± I couldn¡¯t help but feel pain as I rubbed my wound on my left arm. ¡°I did this to myself huh?¡± I muttered as I looked at my bloody hand. I guess I wasn¡¯t in a great state either.


    ¡°Should I see?¡± I asked myself as I peeked over my shoulder to my arm yet itchy arm. ¡°Well, I guess it doesn¡¯t hurt to look¡­¡± I started removing the bandage, it certainly hurt. I deviated my sight for a second and saw a rolled bandage next to the sink. I guess I was also supposed to tend my wounds. I wonder why it isn¡¯t as simple as licking it and rubbing it and be done with it? Sigh¡­


    I kept peeling away the bandage, every time I rubbed it the wrong way it sent jolts of pain throughout my arm, although I did not flinch much, I was no stranger to such a sensation. Although it was quite unpleasant knowing that the waves of pain were caused by no one but myself.


    A bit more of unraveling I started to see the bandage become thin and mostly light red. ¡®I guess I was still a human if I bled, no? Actually, dragons bled now that I recall¡­¡¯ I shook my head as I derailed and finished peeling the bandage.


    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s more than I imagined,¡± I muttered as I saw the fact that my skin was completely gone and muscle tissue seemed scarred and well, it was bloody in general. I adverted my gaze and just soaked in the bath, pain traveled through my arm making me shiver but I just kept myself in the same place. The pain died down and it just felt pleasant, although every time I moved it came back.


    ¡°Looks like I really messed up.¡± I let out a lighthearted chuckle at my silliness. To believe a dragon would injure itself with its claws. That was certainly something new. I sighed as I recalled I had killed someone, it was certainly unexpected, and I was still yet to hear the repercussions for my acts.


    ¡°Ah well, whatever¡­¡±  I shrugged it off, the fact that he died didn¡¯t bother me much, it was a rule of nature, however, breaking my own words and the path I set for myself was hurtful. But, I suppose life isn¡¯t life if things don¡¯t go sideways. At least that¡¯s what I remember.


    ¡°I can¡¯t be conquered, I can¡¯t be tamed, for I am, The Legendary Dragon.¡±  I muttered with a playful voice. ¡°Haha, those words aged fast~¡± I kept a smile thinking about the random things I had experienced, it wasn¡¯t all smiles and laughter, but I certainly had been having fun recently.


    I washed myself and regretfully exited the bath, I couldn¡¯t stay in the water forever, although it would¡¯ve been a nice feeling. My wound did not hurt as much anymore for some reason, the water had healing properties, something changed inside me? Meaningless questions that didn¡¯t matter.


    I sighed as I started clumsily drying myself with a towel I picked up, starting from hair, then feet, thighs torso and arm, then I paused as I looked at my injured arm. I sighed and steeled myself, directly rubbing a wound is painful no matter how anyone approached. And so I started patting it to dry it, it gave me a burning pain every time I did it, but the last thing I wanted was for it to get wet and build some type of moss on it.


    I sighed once that was done and dropped the bloody towel on the ground. The bandage stared at me and I did the same, it was time to wrap myself, or rather, wrap my arm. I took the bandage and started to clumsily wrap it, I had no experience doing something like that before, but it felt quite nice after a few spins, it was tight and snug. I buried the leftover inside the inner folds to avoid it from unwrapping.


    Once that was done I relaxed my tense shoulders, having constant pain caused by yourself and an injury caused by yourself was slightly embarrassing. I made my way back to the room I woke up in, the oil lamp was still the same. Although I noticed something, Fenri was gone.


    ¡°Huh,¡± I muttered in confusion. ¡°I wonder where he is? Hm?¡ª¡± My body hit the ground with a slight thud sound. ¡°W-What?¡± I panicked as Fenri licked me repeatedly, he paused for a second and looked at me in the eyes. ¡°I guess you care about me as well¡­¡± I muttered with a soft voice, and of course, he licked me.


    ¡°Sorry¡­¡± I hugged him as a tear dropped down my eye, I wasn¡¯t the only one, or rather. It wasn¡¯t as black and white as I thought things were, even if Kuro had shown me he cared I did not think almost anyone else did. But then I thought about it, Fenri was always nice to me, so was Ari, and Kuro, some other people were nice to me for no reason. It made me think.


    I paused as I heard a knock on the door and the click of the handle. ¡°W-Wait!¡± I panicked for a second. The door unclicked.


    ¡°Is something wrong?¡± A gentle and soft voice asked from the other side of the door.


    ¡°Just¡­ wait a minute, okay?¡± I was still undressed and snuggling with Fenri. Now, it didn¡¯t bother me to be seen, however, since Kuro gave it such an importance I guess I should respect her wishes.


    I quickly grabbed the clothes on the bed, first putting on the leather bracelet I helped Kuro make and then my other set of clothes, they felt clean and warm. ¡®Huh, where¡¯s that terrible tunic Dan gave me?¡¯ I tilted my head in confusion but shrugged seeing I did not care enough about it.


    I adjusted my clothes in a rush, last thing I wanted was to be disrespectful to the person that tended my wounds. What was it? ¡°Don¡¯t bite the beak, for your world depends on it¡±? Or something like that, old griffon saying.


    I fit in my shoes as if they were slippers and opened the door in a rush with completely unkempt clothes. There he was, a tall man with gentle features and a clean face, wearing a long white robe and some type of funny-looking hat. Was it called a biretta? Regardless, human culture had weird names for things. He looked at me with surprise.


    ¡°No need to be in such a rush you know¡­¡± He said with a bit of a surprise.


    ¡°Haha¡­¡± I awkwardly laughed. ¡°Sorry about that.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± I had no idea how to reply. ¡°May I come in?¡±


    ¡°Em, sure¡­¡± I still had no idea what I was doing, formal things were not my thing, as far as a dragon was concerned it was just a hierarchy.


    I gestured him to go inside after me, he took a seat on a chair next to the table. I followed afterwards and sat across the man I had never seen before.


    I sighed seeing I had no idea how to continue. ¡°So, why am I here?¡± I informally asked not being able to keep the play up.


    ¡°Ah right¡­¡± Looks like he was taken aback by my straightforward approach. ¡°So, you were injured, and we brought you here, we cannot have young apprentices die on us.¡±


    ¡°Ah, I see¡­¡± Looks like that tunic Dan gave me saved me there, alright Dan you don¡¯t owe me anything.


    ¡°Anyway, looks like you are doing fine now by the looks of things.¡± I awkwardly laughed and nodded. ¡°So, now into the serious things.¡± His face hardened and looked at me directly in the eyes.


    ¡°What is the wolf to you? Who are you? We have never had this happen¡­¡± Oh no.


    ¡°Em, the wolf saved my life and mistakenly injured me in the process¡­¡± Oh god, what am I doing?! One wrong word and everything becomes a dumpster fire¡­


    As I nervously sat Fenri gave me a funny look. I glanced at him with pleading eyes, thankfully he realized I was in a desperate situation. And was going to play along by the looks of things.


    ¡°Okay, then¡­ So, you expect me to believe this majestic creature saved you?¡±


    ¡°Yes¡­¡± I looked at the table and placed my hand on it making a fist and clenching it really hard, it added a dramatic effect.


    ¡°Okay, so, why were you the only one covered in blood?¡± I froze and thought for a second. ¡°So?¡±


    ¡°Well, just look at the wolf. As someone that states their faith in divinity how could you not see it, I who has spent their entire life in a humble village praying every day.¡± I gestured towards Fenri. ¡°The moment I saw him, I knew I was safe. His rigid posture and majestic features, those bracelets that seemed to be made from god himself¡­ Can¡¯t you feel it!?¡± I smashed the table.


    The man was frozen. ¡®What had I just done!?¡¯ I paused as I saw his eyes shake. ¡®Or maybe it was the right thing¡­¡¯


    ¡°You know¡­¡± I worded with fake melancholy. ¡°Ever since I was a little girl I had dreamed of becoming a priest, I had always aspired for the stars. There used to be a tale about a white wolf and the thousand stars, if you prayed hard enough he might save your life, or so it said. I prayed and prayed, not for the sake of saving myself, but for saving every single soul that believed in the divinity.¡± I started rubbing my arm with my right hand, like really hard. ¡°I-I¡± I started stuttering from pain. ¡°I-I, just want to be like you¡­ Aaa¡­¡± I started crying from the immeasurable pain I was feeling.


    The man hurriedly stood up and didn¡¯t say a word, rushing out of the room as he wiped his face. Exiting the room in a rush, I did not get to see his expression.


    [Title unlocked: Swindler.]


    You have acquired a silver tongue, as delicate and fine as silk, yet as sharp as a knife. Your words are carefully chosen and delicate.


    [Title unlocked: ?.- -.-. - --- .-.]


    Your mere actions express more than a thousand words and a million tales. For you have found the hidden meaning in empathy and manipulation.


    I saw two things flash on my head, although one of them was a bunch of symbols I did not understand. I liked the description though, I am sure I would be overjoyed if I had gotten it when I was still a dragon. The other one was self-explanatory, however, the part that bothered me the most what I did.


    I dropped my shoulders and just tried to clear my head.


    ¡°I guess I really did it¡­¡± I muttered as I wiped the tears off my face. Fenri did not have a happy look and started biting me, although he was clearly trying to not make me suffer any more pain.


    ¡°Sorry, it was lying or something worse¡­¡± Fenri stopped for a second, almost as if he knew what I meant and started licking me. I guess I was forgiven.


    I moved myself to the bed and laid on my back. What had I done? I was inside the cathedral just based on the man I had met, although I wonder, were my lies convincing enough? No, they were definitely convincing enough. Although, I can¡¯t believe I had done that¡­


    My arm was still burning with a lingering sensation from the pressure I had exerted on it. Looks like I had become a true swindler, and whatever the other title meant. Sigh, I might¡¯ve overdone it.


    ¡°As long as I keep this life for another day, anything¡­ Isn¡¯t that right?¡± I looked at Fenri, he gave me a lick.


    I did not move from the bed and eventually fell asleep with Fenri poised on my arms. I relaxed and my mind started drifting until I fell asleep. It was peaceful and relaxed. Nothing like ever before.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 82) Lies and deception (2)

    Alice.


    I silently opened my eyes and stretched, nothing more peaceful than sleeping. While the room still did not have any windows. I knew for a fact that it was the early morning. For some reason, I would always wake up in the morning when I got a full sleep. Or rather, I would wake up incredibly early, although that was also a thing back in my dragon days, except sleeping for a dragon was¡­ Well, it took months.


    I looked at Fenri who was peacefully sleeping on the bed as normal. I was still stuck in the unfamiliar situation, I wonder what I had truly done.


    I shrugged. ¡°Well, it doesn¡¯t hurt to look around.¡± What was the worst that could happen? I felt that I already was in a very dire situation.


    I moved myself from bed, and brushed my arm against the mattress by accident. Feeling a slight burn of pain. ¡°Ha, I had forgotten.¡± After my dry laugh I completely got up and headed towards the door. No sound was coming from the other side. With a bit of carelessness I opened the door, everything was dark. It was a hallway with doors running throughout both walls, although it felt rather empty.


    I confirmed there was no one and headed out. I chose a direction and with a single step I realized it headed to a dead end, the hallway wasn¡¯t long enough for me to not notice the wall. I turned around and started walking, it didn¡¯t take long before I saw another door. The hinges of the door were facing me, meaning that it was made as an entrance point.


    Oh well, I wouldn¡¯t know what was on the other side if I didn¡¯t explore. With enthusiasm I slowly opened the door, this time I was being careful. To my surprise the door was incredibly silent, almost as if it was brand new and perfectly installed.


    Tap, tap, tap.


    I hurriedly closed the door as I started to hear footsteps coming my way. That was close¡­


    ¡°Sivirud, are you sure about this, she just got here. You can¡¯t allow this¡­¡± A stern voice worded concern.


    ¡°I know, but something tells me it¡¯s the right thing¡­¡±


    The footsteps stopped right in front of the door.


    ¡°Oh no¡­¡± I muttered.


    I heard something get pressed against the door.


    ¡°Sivirud, just because you are a priest like us, doesn¡¯t mean you are like us, don¡¯t get carried away just because you¡¯re in our position. Let me remind you, you are way newer here than any of us, so¡­ Do not get carried away.¡± It sounded like a threat.


    ¡°Haha¡­ Funny that you say it that way... ¡° He breathed in and out. ¡°Let me remind you, that by hierarchy you are lower than me, so, don¡¯t get carried away. I will do whatever I want, and that girl is special.¡±


    I thought to myself, the inner tension is insane. There is a little drama going on early in the morning already, and probably about myself. Ha¡­


    ¡°Tch, if it¡¯s the wrong call, it will cost you.¡± I heard only a pair of footsteps move away followed by a sigh.


    The conversation was done, and so, I started to move away from the door and get to my room, last thing I wanted was to be found out by¡­ Sivirud? Weird name, regardless, I was in a situation I shouldn¡¯t be in.


    CLICK.


    The door behind me opened, making me get stiff as I continued walking as if nothing happened. Although I already knew that I was screwed, for lack of a better word. I was caught eavesdropping, oh well¡­


    ¡°Girl, wait!¡± He called me out in a whisper.


    I turned around and played dumb. ¡°Me?¡± He nodded. ¡°Ah, yes, what do you need?¡± I was innocently soft spoken and pretending to basically be completely confused. Playing around with tilting my head like Kuro did.


    ¡°So you heard?¡± He asked as he narrowed his eyes with a slightly menacing feel.


    ¡°Eh!?¡± My eyes widened. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± I tilted my head as if he was stupid. ¡°But I am glad you are here, where could I get some water? I am rather thirsty.¡± I stuck out my tongue like a silly kid.


    ¡°Oh, yes¡­ Water¡­¡± He started scratching his head in awkwardness. ¡°Just come with me¡­¡± I nodded, his nature had changed to a gentle one just like the first time I had seen him. Had I succeeded yet again? Was this a new-found skill?! I felt slightly thrilled from the possibility.


    He looked out of the door to the hallway. ¡°Is something wrong?¡± I asked feigning concern, I knew he didn¡¯t want to come across the old man he was talking to earlier.


    ¡°Oh¡­ No¡­ No, no, no. Here, let us go.¡± He gently grabbed my hand trying to fake a soft smile, although I could clearly see that he was altered, but he didn¡¯t need to know that. And so, he carried my hand away into the main hallway. Everything was made out of marble (as expected), with smooth walls, and a lot of windows running throughout one side of the wall, the windows did not have any glass and were made to be open, I could clearly see the bleak sky, the sun was not even visible yet.


    He kept guiding me at his own pace as we walked together, although I did notice we went into the completely opposite direction that the other priest went.


    ¡°Do you mind if we just go to my room?¡± He awkwardly asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t mind¡­¡± I was a bit confused but agreed having no other choice. Curiosity killed the cat, although I was no cat, so I was fine.


    Like so, he sped up the pace, before he was slowly walking as he second-guessed himself, I guess he just simply did not want to run into the other person he had a conflict with.


    It did not take long before we stood before an imposing wood door, it did not seem like a personal room, so it made me a bit confused. He took a key to open it, however, I couldn¡¯t help but be slightly tense, I did not know what I was expecting but it made me feel suspicious.


    The door effortlessly creaked and he pushed the wood door, it ever so slightly creaked. I looked at it with wary eyes, although the concern faded immediately.


    ¡°Please, make yourself at home¡­¡± He awkwardly muttered as he gestured me to pass. I couldn¡¯t help but sigh as we entered the room. ¡°Is something wrong?¡±


    ¡°Oh, no¡­ I was just surprised that this is your room¡­¡±


    We were in a library, bookshelves that went sky high, a ceiling you could not normally see. Dimly lit by oil lamps running throughout the wall and tables. It was unfit for a room.


    ¡°Ah, surprised? Ever since I was a kid I liked books.¡± He started walking towards a corner of the room, a bed was there with a nightstand and another oil lamp. I guess it really was his room, although one thing was for certain, he was a lot more comfortable here than when in the hallways, I guess it was kind of like his safe space.


    I heard a stream of water pour into a container, I turned around and there he was, handing me a glass of water. I looked at it with slight confusion. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it does not have anything.¡± He smiled to comfort me once again. I did a non-existent shrug and drank it, it¡¯s not like I could be poisoned anyway.


    The priest gestured me to sit along with him, and as expected, I did.


    ¡°So¡­ T-Thank you for saving me¡­ S-s¡­¡± I stuttered as I recalled he never told me his name.


    ¡°Ah you¡¯re welcome, you may call me Sivirud¡­¡± He thought for a second. ¡°And you are?¡± I became stiff, should I call myself Aizen? I mean, there was no harm, but what if¡­


    ¡°Aizen¡­¡± I did it¡­ Point of no return¡­


    ¡°Aizen¡­ Aizen¡­ Aizen¡­¡± He started muttering my name, I guess I was done for. ¡°Where have I heard that name before? Hmmm¡­¡± He paused. ¡°Oh right, the dragon right?¡±


    ¡°Y-Yeah¡­¡± Oh no¡­


    ¡°That¡¯s a fantastic name, while dragons are known for their greed this particular one was rather interesting, rather known for his courage and tenacity. Just like you!¡± He happily spoke to me. ¡°Your parents did a fantastic job, where are they now?¡±


    ¡°About that¡­¡± My gaze trailed off.


    ¡°Oh¡­ I am so sorry¡­¡± He started drawing on the table with his finger, a habit I had when I was feeling down. Although that rarely happened as of late.


    ¡°Well, I am sure they are in a good place.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°I¡¯ve been meaning to ask but¡­¡± I paused and made sure to speak with a gentle tone and slowly. ¡°Will, everything be okay?¡±


    He paused, almost as if he was taken aback. ¡°What do you mean?¡± He asked with genuine confusion.


    I internally prepared myself to invent a life monologue and started speaking with fake emotion. ¡°Well you see¡­ I was born in a small village, so all we know is hear-say¡­ The story that I believe so much in could just be a lie¡­ As far as the wolf goes, maybe it belongs to a tamer? I came to the capital just recently and heard something about a fantastic tamer with a wolf companion¡­¡± Of course, I knew said tamer¡­


    I started looking at the table and fiddling to make it look more convincing. At that moment was when my hand was grabbed. I lifted my gaze with slight surprise, he looked at me with empathy and teary eyes.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s real. Your faith¡­ is real, I-I read about it.¡± He started wiping his eyes. ¡°Sorry¡­¡± I froze and quickly thought of a way to fake real empathy, I wasn¡¯t suited for this!


    ¡°It¡¯s fine¡­¡± I muttered as I pressed my free hand on my wound. ¡°I-It¡¯s fine¡­¡± I started tearing up, this was definitely bad. No one in their right mind would purposefully press their wound just to cry¡­


    I could not keep it up and so I stopped. ¡°I am, glad¡­ that¡­ it¡¯s real¡­ truly glad¡­¡± I said with a quickened breathing as I wiped my flushed cheeks.


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± He let go of my hand, and looked away for a moment and then he looked back at me almost as if he had remembered something. ¡°Hey¡­¡± He called out to me with a soft voice. ¡°Remember what you said?¡± I tilted my head. ¡°That you wanted to be like me?¡±


    ¡°Yes¡­¡± I spoke with a bit of uneasiness, although it came off as timid.


    ¡°I have news for you, you see. Things in the capital have been rather hectic lately with the new king, and well. Each cathedral has a leading priest if you will, the leading priest of this one¡­¡± He stopped. ¡°Retired... ¡° Ha¡­ so he died. ¡°So, once that happens we all gather at the cathedral to elect a new head priest.¡± He paused and looked at me directly in the eyes. ¡°That¡¯s when you come in.¡±


    I pointed at myself. ¡°Me?¡± He nodded.


    ¡°We elect from a set of practitioners that have been here for a long time, but you¡­ I am certain, there is something special about you, my faith tells me that it¡¯s the case.¡± Haa¡­


    I started fiddling as I backed in my chair. ¡°But¡­ How do I know I am enough?¡±


    He grabbed my hands once again. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I know you can do it.¡± He paused. ¡°Now, now. Go to bed, it is still quite early, it¡¯s today after all, you need to save your energy.¡± Ha¡­


    ¡°But¡­ what will I need to do when the time comes?¡± I asked with genuine concern, although I had mixed too much emotion¡­


    He pressed my hand firmly once again. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you will just have to pray to the universal altar.¡± Ha¡­ I was screwed.


    ¡°Okay¡­ Can I take a book, I like to read as well¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh, you can read?!¡± Was it that rare? I nodded with a bit of uneasiness. ¡°That¡¯s amazing, take whichever one you like.¡± He let go of my hand and gestured me to venture into the hallways of the books.


    I took up on the opportunity and went in, luckily he just stayed in his seat without following me, so I had a chance to look around without any rush or worry about the thing I was looking for. Which was rather nice, because I needed a book that would quite literally save me from this place.


    So I started browsing the bookshelves as I muttered the names written on the books¡¯ spines.


    ¡°Darkness in the light¡­ volume 1¡­ 2¡­ 5... ¡° Ha¡­ ¡°The eternal faith, Faith in the light, Darkness and its dangers¡­¡± What were these titles. ¡°The blind faith and its consequences.¡± I stopped and my eyes lingered on that book, it seemed old. I grabbed it and pulled it out along with a cloud of dust.


    ¡°The dangers of blind faith.¡± It did not seem like much at first, what got me was the name of the author. ¡®Amatsukami¡­ What kind of weird name was that?!¡¯ I thought as I opened the first page.


    ¡®The dangers of playing god, a self reflection an autobiography and most importantly, a journal.¡¯ Wait¡­ could it be? I kept reading. ¡®I can¡¯t remember when it started, when this nightmare started. Relic items were rare or downright scarce, but to think an entire nation would hunt you for it¡­¡¯ I skipped a few pages. ¡®All I had to do was instill a fake belief, and that was all I needed?¡ª¡¯ I closed it.


    ¡°This information is¡­ dangerous¡­¡± It was a book, written by the creator of the faith. Or rather, the person that defined what faith was.


    ¡°Have you found anything yet?¡± He asked as he peeked into the hallway. I in a panic put the book into my convenient storage. Just in time as he started coming into my direction.


    ¡°Em, I was looking at the darkness in the light, it seems something to think about.¡± He stopped by my side and looked at the book.


    ¡°I just recently read this one, it¡¯s quite¡­ descriptive, are you sure. Will you be okay?¡± He looked at me with genuine concern. ¡°Well, there is this one I wanted to read today¡­¡± He started browsing the books and paused at the empty space, the book i had taken. ¡°Where is it?¡±


    ¡°Is everything okay?¡± I asked once again, faking concern, also once again.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ Here.¡± He gave me the book and pushed me away. ¡°You know how to get back to your room, right?¡± He asked with a bit of warryness, I, of course nodded. ¡°Good, then go.¡±


    He had become a bit uneasy, after seeing the book was gone. Looks like I had taken something important for him, although¡­ It did not concern me!


    I sighed as I exited the library and headed my way holding the book Sivirud had given me. Although my concern did not last long.


    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± It was a fat man with white beard and a dropping face, he did not give a kind aura like one would expect from a priest, which did not surprise me considering the conversation that had happened earlier.


    I of course, put on my act again. ¡°Oh sorry, I was just getting water¡­¡±


    ¡°Tch, I see, go back to your room.¡± Waa¡­ what a terrible personality.


    I wordlessly nodded and started walking. But I was stopped by a hand placed on my shoulder.


    ¡°Where did you get that book, was it Sivirud?¡± He asked with a tone of annoyance.


    ¡°Well, I ran into him while I was looking for water, and I wanted to read something. See?¡± I shoved the book in his face with a fake smile, almost like a little kid.


    He clicked his tongue once again. ¡°Just go.¡± He waved me away in annoyance.


    ¡°Ha, so annoying,¡± I muttered as I backtracked my way back to the room.


    It did not take long before I was back in my room, and of course, Fenri was still peacefully sleeping. Although in reality I had something more important to do, which was. ¡°Reading¡­¡± I said as I took the book out and set it on the table with a heavy thud.


    ¡°Ha, it¡¯s so big, where to begin¡­¡± I did not have magical reading skills to be able to read the entire book in a second, something to lament about. As I thought about it I grabbed the oil lamp and brought it next to the book.


    ¡°Well, I guess if I don¡¯t begin I will never finish¡­¡± I muttered some hollow words to try get some enthusiasm and get things done, honestly the book was insurmountable. I had heard jokes about killing someone with a book, but it sounded silly, how could a book be heavy enough to kill someone? This was the book¡­ and so, I opened it and started reading.


    ¡®Amatsukami, a name that people feared, a name of rejoice. One of the few in the top percentile¡­¡¯ ¡­ Self-ego boost much? ¡®My entire journey here all I heard was praise, it was exhilarating, almost euphoric¡­¡¯


    ¡°Haa¡­ boring, skip!¡± I moved a few pages, I did not want to read about someone patting themselves on the back or their regrets. Honestly, everyone has a regret to some extent, but just because of that it doesn¡¯t mean I am in a constant state of misery.


    ¡®The dangers of playing god¡­¡¯ Aha. `I thought I had found my paradise, I was unrivaled, it did not take long before I governed my own nation. It was fun¡­¡¯ Stop already! ¡®It didn¡¯t take long before people started to get suspicious, almost crazy. They wanted to know what was the secret behind my power¡­¡¯ SKIP!


    ¡®All of the existing nations declared war on me. I had to think of a way to lie my way through things, maybe just skew it enough for it to sound true.¡¯ Aha¡­ I continued skipping things I thought were irrelevant. ¡®I revealed my so-called faith, it really was just empty words, yet people seemed to believe. In the fact that there was a greater power, something that instilled us with blessings, something that gave regular objects powers.¡¯


    I paused. And thought for a second, then continued reading, this had gotten interesting. ¡®Of course, I knew the truth, just like anybody else in my position, there was a greater power, but it was simply lines of code, something that existed but had no real sentience, just a bunch of if statements¡­ However, even though I did not know the real truth behind the mess. How did I end up here?¡¯


    Hmm, so basically similar to our case, although I still don¡¯t understand my situation, or rather I refused to acknowledge it, or even think about it.


    ¡®I wondered what happened to the world bosses, according to the story they were sentient, but I never found any of them, I did find my NPC companion, for lack of a better word, he seemed to have become a person, fully aware, and even interpreted the past as experiences. Yet I couldn¡¯t help but still see him as a tool?¡ª¡¯ I closed the book and stopped reading.


    ¡°I guess it really is that black and white¡­¡± I sighed. ¡°Just a bunch of words strung together in some kind of magical interface, executing instructions to create the illusion of life¡­¡± I looked at my hand with a distant look. ¡°Ah well, clinging to life goes against dragon beliefs. So, it doesn¡¯t really matter on the big scale.¡± I shrugged my negative emotions off.


    ¡°Well, I guess I read enough of this guy¡¯s life for now, what I really want to know is  how can I get out of this mess.¡± I opened the book again hoping to gain something useful from this person¡¯s life monologue. Although I quickly realized it would take forever, so I started skimming the pages.


    ¡®Life, rough, blah¡­ About items, the regrets, life, what I want, what I desire¡­¡¯ This guy¡­ ¡® Lies and deception?¡ª how I convinced people of the faith.¡¯ Oh-hoh, that¡¯s something I wanted to read about.


    ¡®All high tier items have powers, what better way to convince someone than to show said power. It could be fire, water, a beam for that matter. Metal bending, anything visible to the eye that felt as if it came out of nowhere, something that felt super-natural. It might be possible to do it with chantless magic under the right circumstances.¡¯ So basically just pretend you have no idea what happened when something you did happened? I think I am adept at that already¡­


    ¡®I realized something, the greater power, or system was interesting, it grouped things and set them in a domain, just like swords, helmets, among other various things. They always worked perfectly along with their intended use thanks to the system.¡¯ That¡¯s more than obvious...


    And so I continued skimming the pages, until my eyes glued to one. ¡®Prayers, and how I chose a universal prayer.¡¯ He basically formatted the book as a monologue and then as a majestic life biography, although the formatting was horrible and confusing at best, at worst it was indecipherable.


    ¡®I chose something that sounded mysterious, a language that many people did not know, I am not religious, but it was something I had to do.¡¯ He wrote something below in a language I had never seen before, although I could still understand what he was trying to say for some reason.


    I started reading the meaning in a mutter.


    ¡°... Blessed is the one who bears a temptation


    Since after being tested, he will receive the crown of life


    Lord, the source of good-heartedness


    Lord, the divine fire, be gracious¡­¡±


    I stopped, this just felt like an entirely different religion altogether! Was this guy someone that enjoyed creating religions in his free time? What¡¯s next, some type of religion that worships some specific type of food?! Preposterous!


    I made sure to remember the original words used for the prayer, it could save me later today. But this book was outdated, I couldn¡¯t expect it to be completely accurate, nor accurate for that matter. Which was one of the reasons I needed to deceive, I needed to make them believe that I was real, that I was someone blessed¡­


    ¡°Ha¡­ easier said than done¡­¡± I muttered without spirits and got to thinking.


    I sighed in defeat. ¡°I must use magic, if only there was a simple way to not blow up things, I couldn¡¯t really do much in terms of actual magic, or rather, something that looked supernatural aside from actual supernatural disasters¡­ But I needed something a bit more, laid back¡­ if only I could use some type of light magic, just some other type of magic in general¡­¡±


    ¡°Wait¡­ What if I try the same thing again, controlling mana directly¡­¡± I looked up and tried to focus on the ambient mana on the room, it wasn¡¯t simple, but I could still do it, the problem was¡­ ¡°it can¡¯t blow up¡­ if it blows up, it will cause collateral damage¡­ It could also possibly be treated as a sign of rejection, it was out of the question. Now that I think about it, why did it blow up last time...


    I started to think, on paper it shouldn¡¯t have blown up, but it had become unstable and almost fused together, which essentially made a void that collapsed in itself. Hmm, I needed something different, something that magically fixed things, kind of like the so-called greater power¡­ Greater power¡­


    ¡®Greater¡­¡¯ I started muttering, I realized something. ¡°If it had touched something, that something would function within its domain, it gave it a specific function or one to choose from according to the characteristics of things¡­ The book said so as well¡­ If it was a function designated on an item then it would¡¯ve gone flawlessly. There is no room for human error.


    Sigh, what could I do¡­ I dropped on the table and just emotionlessly looked at the surface, it was lukewarm, and perfect to rest in. But I couldn¡¯t sleep, I still had an entire situation to get out of. What a problem¡­


    Some time passed by and I started playing with my bracelet, I was a lot more careful, last thing I wanted was to injure myself yet again. I noticed the scales would mend with each other in case of needing more surface area. I started playing the ¡°let¡¯s see what shapes I can make,¡± game, it wasn¡¯t fun. Triangle, circles, espheres, hexagons, everything seemed possible. I tried making it into a little buckler shield, it worked perfectly.


    I gave up on it, the shape would not dispel unless I stopped supplying it mana, but I was too bored to even bother doing that. It was just like an on/off switch to me. I laid back in my chair and started doodling on the air with my hand and the shield. I was too bored to even think about things.


    ¡°Well, I could always play make a certain shape with the ambient mana.¡± And so, I started moving my arm around along with the shield, it was effortless, it was¡­ ¡°Weird¡­¡±


    It shouldn¡¯t have been this easy to manipulate mana, yet it felt as if I had the same control as the gauntlet. I took the gauntlet off, and tried doing the same thing, it was hard just like I remembered it being.


    ¡°So, if I do this¡­¡± I put on the gauntlet and tried again, to my surprise it did not work, and it was still just as hard. ¡°So it isn¡¯t that, huh¡­¡± I continued to quietly sit as I thought about what could¡¯ve caused it.


    ¡®I had the gauntlet on, yes, once I took it off, it stopped working, so by logic once it was back on it should¡¯ve kept working¡­ What did the book say?¡¯ I consulted the book once again.


    ¡®They always worked perfectly along with their intended use thanks to the system.¡¯ Along with their intended use came consistency¡­ but, my item¡¯s intended use wasn¡¯t to control mana, it was to control the scales through my mana, to influence them as an extension of me¡­ But, if It was an extension of me, doesn¡¯t mean I essentially had the same control over substance as the item had over the scales? It was a bit too far fetched, but maybe...


    I looked at my bracelet once again. Without thinking much about it, I injected mana into the bracelet and started doing the usual. I imagined something similar, like when the explosion happened, although I did not intend in blowing up something this time... I started moving a small amount of mana, the little particles started to gather, the first thing I imagined was¡­ light as an element, how the particles gathered close together to then spread, and doing that in a loop would create light.


    I replicated it, everything seemed to go well, no explosions, no weird behaviour. ¡°Ha, to imagine magic is as stupid as have the right item and suddenly you dominate all the elements¡­¡± I muttered as I finished manipulating, although I immediately regretted it.


    My entire vision turned white, I had no idea what just had happened. I tried opening my eyes but nothing was happening, I felt something solid to my side, I tried pressing against it to get away from it, but I would just be pulled back to it. A few seconds of fruitless struggle went by, and then white started to clear, I was looking at a carpet. No, I was laying on the ground.


    ¡°So¡­ I was blinded¡­ How?¡± I questioned myself. ¡°There is no light source to blind me in this room¡­¡± I facepalmed in realization. ¡°It¡¯s a success¡­ I suppose.¡± No idea if it was something to be happy about or something to be sad about.


    ¡°Well on the good side, I have my magical ''what if'' to instill belief,¡± I said with a grin, it was perfect, I had something that was supernatural?¡ªnamely a flash of blinding light that I could summon at my will with enough practice, although it wasn¡¯t as simple as normal magic, and by that I mean; it wasn¡¯t as simple as thinking about it, which kind of sucked. But it was still some major difference Going from explosion to a product, it made me feel happy with myself and the results.


    ¡°Now time to practice, and maybe not get blinded again,¡± I said with enthusiasm.


    Alice.


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 (Chpt. 83) Lies and deception (3)

    Alice.


    ¡°I think I am gaining some type of flashbang resistance¡­¡± I muttered in suspicion, insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. I guess I was insane.


    I had been detonating flashbangs in my room for what felt like forever. At this point, night and day felt the same, a state of being. I, knew everything. The white noise of the background, was non-existent, who needed noise? All one needed was a sense of self, I had that¡­


    BANG!


    [Title unlocked: Simple Sage.]


    You know everything that there is to know, for you hold the secrets to life~


    Wait, what? I came back to reality seeing the stupid text thrown into my head. Sage? Ha, I mean, I knew I was wise, but sage?! Fufufu~ looks like I can truly become the best swindler in the world now! Not like it matters, but there is fun in messing with reality.


    ¡°Well, I did practice a lot, although I don¡¯t remember doing it¡­¡± I knew time had passed, but there was a gap in my memory. Did I go into auto-pilot or something? Or was it some kind of trance? Needless to say, it was weird.


    Well one last time. I kept my hand lowered for dramatic effect. I figured staring into the air would be more impressive when I did it. I breathed in and out and mentally prepared myself, last thing I wanted was to become a Grand Sage by error.


    Focus on the particles¡­ gathering them and spreading them, creating a little loop. It was small and efficient. I paid my utmost attention to the process, it started to shine. It was a little sphere with a white light, it was pure. Kind of hard to believe a dragon could use light magic, even if it was the simplest form.


    I sighed and¡­ spread!


    FLASH!


    I was blinded yet again, this time I was ready so I did not fall to the ground.


    ¡°I will call this a success for now¡­¡± Now that I had mastered the arts of light creation, I had to keep practicing, I was pretty sure I made a pretty weird face from focusing too much. It was about being nonchalant about it, that way I could pray at the same time.


    I kept making balls and detonating them shortly after. It started being rather easy, It was relaxing in a way, I kind of wondered what I could do using magic this way? It wasn¡¯t the norm, I did not think it was even a method to begin with, it was ridiculously hard, and yet it removed a lot of my limits.


    * * *


    There is no difference between light and day anymore¡­ WRONG! I spaced out yet again¡­ I do remember what happened this time though, I have to say. I have made a lot of progress, although the process is so monotone that it¡¯s almost entrancing, it did not take much mana either, so it did not help. I could probably do it endlessly¡­


    ¡°Well, at least I have mastered it!¡± I justified myself in embarrassment. Imagine spacing out while in the middle of practicing magic, preposterous! Yet again¡­


    I sighed in relief seeing I had nothing to worry about if things went my way, things going sideways? Well, what¡¯s the worst that could happen?! Although I kind of wonder how did the Sivirud guy learn about the story, or whatever.


    I shrugged. ¡°Well, not like it really matters at this point in time¡­¡± I dismissed my thoughts, I seriously did not want to think about it.


    Knock, knock.


    Oh, was he here? I hid away the stolen book of Mr-I-like-to-boost-my-ego, and  stroded towards the door. I opened it cheerfully.


    ¡°Sivirud?¡± I kind of wanted to talk to him, he was a nice guy.


    ¡°Um, no. Here.¡± A priest looking guy shoved me some clothes. ¡°Be ready and outside on the halls in five minutes. We will be waiting.¡± He left and closed the door for me.


    Ha¡­ ¡°Well that¡¯s a disappointment.¡± I sighed. I ended up opening the door like a cheerful kid and asking someone¡¯s name. How embarrassing, well¡­ something to think about for later¡­


    I started to hear a clamour outside. I did not want to be out there, especially with all the pushing and shoving I kept hearing, the constant shoving against the door wasn¡¯t really kind either. If I went outside, it would be a massacre¡­


    I started to get dressed. Fenri for some reason had been soundlessly sleeping the whole time. It made me wonder how he didn¡¯t get bothered by the constant flashing in the room. It was¡­ odd. Maybe he will share his secrets someday, when he can speak¡­


    ¡°Heeey¡­¡± I started to poke Fenri, he shook for a bit and then clumsily looked up to me. ¡°When will you be able to speak?¡±


    ¡°Wooof¡­¡± He just gave me this lousy bark.


    ¡°Ah I see¡­¡± I still couldn¡¯t understand him¡­ ¡°Well, I will be going to do this ritual thing, please don¡¯t go out of the room, okay?¡±


    ¡°Woof¡­¡± He fell asleep.


    ¡°Still, why can¡¯t I understand Fenri?¡± Oh well a mystery for another day I suppose, he was a very expressive wolf so that was fine. I sighed and started to put on the outfit, it was well¡­ Pretty much the same thing Dan gave me with golden embroidery going throughout the entire thing. It was a fancy rag.


    Just a bunch of cloth, but I still had to wear it. I sighed as I put it on, it was a bit oversized. Kind of like the robe I took off before going into the bath¡­ Talking about robes, where is that fancy robe I got for being good at magic? Was it royal mage or something? Well, who cares, I have something more fun than to play the mage.


    ¡°But, where is that robe? Hmm¡­¡± I thought about the robes I had seen before. ¡°I mean, they either took it away or it¡¯s the bath one.¡± I went inside the bath and there it was, the all-familiar royal court robe, except it seemed to have suffered a bit.


    I picked it up, it was wet. ¡°Maybe.. Later¡­¡± I reluctantly took it out of the bathroom and placed it on the table, it was a bit weird seeing water splatter all over the perfectly fine wood and then see it get absorbed, but, I was in a hurry.


    I got close to the door to try to listen to the clamour outside, it was fairly quiet. And so I made my choice, well it wasn¡¯t really a choice. I opened the door and walked into the hall, it was bright and kind of empty. There were a few similarly dressed people walking towards the main hall or whatever.


    I got a lot of weird stares. Was I looking weird? I shrugged, it didn¡¯t matter. What was the worst that could possibly happen? Well, it can¡¯t be as bad as I imagined it to be, no such thing as getting killed by the church. At least not for failing to pray in front of an altar.


    I continued absentmindedly walking, the door was open, it was kind of saturated but I still manage to squish through. Bad interior design, although based on what I had heard it wasn¡¯t a common event, so maybe it simply meant that it wasn¡¯t even designed for that in the first place.


    Well, I wonder how long will it be until I can lea?¡ª


    My arm got pulled from the crowd. ¡°Wha¡­¡± One second I was indulging in my own thoughts, the other I was looking back at Sivirud. He looked at me and sighed.


    ¡°I was wondering where you were¡­¡± A slight pause. ¡°You were making me worried you know¡­¡± He did not stop talking as he tugged my arm to the complete opposite side of where the line of people were going.


    One thing that surprised me is that I seemed to be on the younger end of the spectrum, and also, most people were male. No wonder I had received weird stares, but enough about that¡­


    ¡°Why are you taking me with you, am I not supposed to be over there?¡± I pointed behind me as Sivirud talked, truthfully I did not know what to make of it. I wasn¡¯t even paying attention to him, it was kind of awkward, thankfully he didn¡¯t notice and instead he paused once again.


    ¡°Oh I forgot to explain, didn¡¯t I? Us priests get to choose a special candidate, one we favor if you  could say. Such candidates get to come with us and watch the ceremony until the very end, and then they get to display their faith in front of all the people that gathered!¡± Ehhh¡­


    ¡°I-I see....¡± I was¡­ fucked¡­ ¡°But, I am still unsure, what happens if I do bad?!¡± I faked a cry of panic. He stopped in his tracks and leaned towards me.


    ¡°You will be fine, I promise.¡± That smile and pure eyes of his, made me feel genuinely bad. I was the king of terror, not the saint girl I was pretending to be. Well, I made my choices. Best thing I can do is owe up to them, and hopefully get something out of it. Ha¡­


    I made my decision. ¡°If I?¡ª¡±


    ¡°If I am in the wrong, then the altar shall decide¡­¡± My eyes widened, was he, did he just? ¡°Surprised? I could tell you were going to say that, the look in your eyes says it all.¡± Eh.


    How could he, how¡­ When did he?¡ª


    He clapped my cheeks with care. ¡°Now now, let¡¯s get going Aizen. I might have only met you for a small period of time, but I understand you better than anyone here¡­¡±


    ¡°Okay¡­¡± I was¡­ bewildered, flabbergasted, astonished.


    No amount of adjectives could describe the conflicting emotions I was feeling. A part of me wanted to be mad, a part of me was curious, I felt strangely happy and yet mad. It felt like he cared about me, and yet it angered me that he made such assumptions. What a conflict¡­


    I sighed in defeat as he guided me with rush and care. One thing was certain, and that feeling did not go away. I just wanted to get out of this mess when I got the chance, this only solidified it. It seemed fun and yet at the same time I felt like it was something I shouldn¡¯t mess with.


    Unfortunately I was stuck for now, so might as well just¡­ continue for now. With yet another sigh I focused on actually keeping up the pace with Sivirud.


    He seemed to realize this and started to walk faster, although he did not say anything. I was thankful for that. Maybe he wasn¡¯t as generic as I thought he was¡­ Wait¡­ was I getting attached? Ha¡­ funny how that works.


    I stopped thinking about the matter and just continued to keep the pace, going through the halls, or rather, just walking through the same hall and going in a completely different direction, it had a few turns here and there, but truthfully I was completely lost, the ever-so-elusive path had defeated me. The place was still white and bland, so, unfortunately that did not help at all...


    ¡°We are almost there¡­¡± He said with slight difficulty, walking so fast wasn¡¯t easy. Although I wasn¡¯t particularly struggling, so I just said ¡°sure thing,¡± and was done with it.


    A few more minutes of walking, some stairs, and at last. We stood before a small door. ¡°Now, let¡¯s not talk too much okay, it¡¯s disrespectful.¡±


    ¡°Ha, okay.¡± I wasn¡¯t even surprised, but he was treating me like a child so it was odd.


    The door creaked as it slowly opened, it was totally dramatic, and yet I saw Sivirud try to open it as if it was going to make it more silent. Truthfully, it was going to creak and squeak all it wanted, it really wasn¡¯t that hard to understand, but regardless. I decided to keep my mouth shut.


    As the door finally opened, I managed to see the other side at last. ¡°It¡¯s a balcony¡­¡± I muttered. It was a balcony that overlooked some type of big hall. I could see a statue in the middle, it was an armored man with a grandiose atmosphere and cool bespoke armor with spiky ornaments. The statue was under a dome construction in the roof, it was completely golden.


    It was quite impressive, but something else caught my attention, the aura of the statue, it wasn¡¯t like aura aura, but it was more of a feeling it was giving. It felt powerful as if it shielded the the entire cathedral. It was something ethereal.


    As I admired the statue, my hand was grabbed yet again. Sivirud walked into the balcony, it felt like a private area, well, it was a private area, it was an area for spectators with a lot of chairs and small tables to sit on. I saw a lot of people dressed just like Sivirud and a lot of people dressed like me alongside them, almost every priest had an accompanying apprentice, or whatever my current position was called.


    Honestly, I had no idea at this point, too many things happening at once, and frankly the fancy-looking statue was the most interesting thing I had seen so far in the cathedral.


    Sivirud kept dragging me along the balcony forever until finally, we arrived at an empty set of chairs and table, he gestured me to sit alongside him, I, of course, had no other choice but to comply. I sat there as I overlooked the great-hall


    I quickly noticed something, the colossal statue in front of me was the altar. I was overlooking the altar hall, I made eye contact with some people in the crowd. All of them were townspeople, some of them recognized me, some didn¡¯t. Well, at least that¡¯s all i could assume from them pointing fingers at me. As far as me recognizing someone, well, I can¡¯t remember the king¡¯s name so¡­


    It was a bit awkward, seeing a room so big from the top. We were basically next to the statue, and then a crowd of people, so many people came to see. I felt nothing. I mean, now that I think about it. Didn¡¯t I use to get excited when seeing crowds of people?! I mean, imagine how much exp one could get with a single fire breath¡­ Well, actually, now that I think about it. The desire went away as soon as I got to max level. Are all monsters the same?


    As I had questions about the world, I heard footsteps approaching, they were heavy and slow, but not quite calm. I kind of wanted to take a wild-guess about who could it be, I mean, the footsteps held some type of grudge, I could tell. Who got into a fight with Sivirud, who could it be?!


    ¡°Sivirud.¡±


    ¡°Hello, Afghastin.¡± Do all the church people have weird names? ¡°I am sorry about yesterday.¡±


    Taking the initiative I see.


    ¡®


    ¡°No worries, more importantly, who is this girl you have chosen as your candidate, now that I can finally talk to her, I am sure I can get to know a lot about her.¡± Didn¡¯t I literally meet him at the halls? Ooh, so we playing the ¡°I don¡¯t know you game¡±.


    ¡°Oh hi, Afghastadadin!¡± I said as I pretended to be a child. ¡°I am Aizen, pleased to meet you.¡± I said as I extended my left hand, giving him a chance to see my gauntlet would be too risky with this guy.


    ¡°Oh Aizen? That¡¯s a wonderful name, although it can carry a lot of weight, be careful who you tell your name to.¡± Ha, if there is one thing I won¡¯t get rid of is my name. He turned to Sivirud. ¡°I see you have chosen a girl with splendid manners, I was doubting you. My sincerest apologies.¡± Sivirud nodded.


    As far as the fat priest goes, he walked slowly to Sivirud¡¯s ear. ¡°Let¡¯s hope it¡¯s the right choice, there are consequences to be had after all.¡± Even though he was supposed to be whispering I still managed to hear him loud and clear.


    ¡°We shall wait and see. Shouldn¡¯t you be getting to your set Ghastin?¡± Waa, Sivirud suddenly turned badass!


    All I heard was fat priest click his tongue. Honestly, I had no idea why he kept being so annoying, he was about to expire anyway. That beard of his was no joke, neither were those wrinkles.


    He walked away with the same dramatic heaviness to his footsteps, why did he have to be all flamboyant-like? If he is going to act all mighty and stuff, at least show it to me. There is no greater proof of superiority than power.


    Sivirud¡¯s gaze seemed to be lost somewhere off in the distance. ¡°Anything I should worry about?¡± I brought him back to reality, he rapidly shook his head.


    ¡°Ah¡­ No, no, no¡­ No¡­ Not at all, I was just¡­ thinking¡­¡± So a lot of things to worry about.


    ¡°You know, I can tell the both of you are in quite bad terms. ¡° Sivirud stopped and awkwardly scratched the back of his head.


    ¡°So you noticed.¡± I nodded. ¡°Sigh, I guess I owe you an explanation for dragging you into this mess¡­ I became a priest through nomination, meaning an ex-priest voted for me, this method is quite rare and often seen as undeserved. Anyway, since Afghastin enjoys power, he felt as if I was intruding, especially because I have more power¡­¡± He sighed once again. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t even be telling you this, but after this interaction, it¡¯s a point of no return.¡±


    ¡°Ha, okay.¡±


    He stood up and firmly grabbed my shoulders, staring deeply into my eyes. ¡°I might not be your parents, I might just be some strange figure, but please! Become a priest!¡± Ehh¡­ ¡°Everything will be better for us. I can tell, there is something special about you, so please!¡± Ehhhhhh¡­ Shameless today aren¡¯t we?


    ¡°Quick question, can I use absolutely any method at my disposal?¡±


    ¡°What are yo?¡ª yes¡­¡± He affirmed as he saw my wicked smile. ¡°But what methods will you even use, wait¡­ don¡¯t tell me¡­¡± Oh, did he realize something I didn¡¯t? ¡°Your faith is so strong that you can make another wolf miracle happen!¡± In the end, even if brainwashed, he was still a kind person.


    ¡°Hmm, well¡­ We will see about that.¡± For now. ¡°What are your thoughts on the kin race?¡± He had to have some thoughts, there was absolutely no way he didn¡¯t.


    He heard me and blinked for a few seconds with a pensive look on his face. ¡°Good question, I never really thought about them.¡± Ha¡­¡± I suppose that they¡­ exist?¡± It was too much for my little priest to handle¡­


    ¡°What happens if I fail?¡± I nonchalantly asked, his expression changed into an ugly one of pain. Maybe I asked the wrong question, there are certainly things one shouldn¡¯t say.


    ¡°I will die.¡± He said without emotion. ¡°B-but, since I got you into it¡­ you are in danger! So please, cooperate for me at least for now, for your own sake.¡± He was truly too kind for me. I guess it was my turn.


    I grasped his hands with decisiveness and looked into his eyes. ¡°Trust me, it will be alright.¡± I smiled, he instantly became at ease for some reason, well, being a swindler wasn¡¯t so bad after all...


    He relaxed on the chair. ¡°Well, it¡¯s not like we can keep waiting any longer.¡± He faced towards the statue, I followed his gaze only for it to end at the statue¡¯s feet. There was a priest will overly-exaggerated clothing.


    ¡°Is he your superior?¡± I asked Sivirud.


    ¡°Yeah, he is the Arch-priest Salgrud. One of two archpriests and works under the command of the will of the seven lights.¡± Ha, that¡¯s a mouthful.


    - ¡°Welcome to everyone, as you may know we need a successor, someone to carry the torch of the faith! Further beyond to what Amatsukami ever envisioned!¡± Ha¡­ His voice was oddly loud and echoed throughout the hall.


    The crowd started to cheer, I could see it in their eyes, they were totally brainwashed by now. They eagerly waited for the next words of the announcer ?¡ª the arch-priest.


    - ¡°Today we will be doing the test that has withstood the test of time! The test of¡­¡± a pause of a few seconds followed. ¡°Faith¡­ A word that we place so much weight on, yet very few know what it actually means, what it actually is. We need someone that understands the Faith at its core, someone that can bring Faith to an upheaval, someone like¡­ Amatsukami¡­¡±


    - ¡°That¡¯s why we are here gathered today!¡±


    People started cheering, some started to cry, they were exhilarated. I looked back at Sivirud, even though his face was unchanging his eyes were shining with admiration. I was in a circus...I had to make sure and popped my head out to see further, some priests seemed indifferent others had the same look as Sivirud, but none of them seemed to be as annoyed as me. So even if they did not particularly believe in the Faith they did not think it was something stupid.


    I was alone, but I continued staring to the statue¡¯s feet, maybe I would learn a thing or two, based on the little information I have, priests are very important, and there are a lot here. Last thing I wanted was to do a big oopsie in front of so many people.


    - ¡°Now, time to display our Faith!¡± More crowd cheering. ¡°Time to welcome our long term apprentice!¡± He did a hand motion, a tall and skinny person approached, wearing the same clothes I was given.


    He knelt in front of the statue. ¡°Amatsukami, god of ours, bless us with fortune, bless us¡­ with power and faith!¡± Waa, that type of prayer had nothing to do with what I read!


    He continued spouting random nonsense of the egotistical creator of the religion until he finally stood up.


    - ¡°Deep words you speak of, can you show us how deep your words truly are?! Will Amatsukami accept you? Touch god and he will touch you!¡± Eh.


    The man with confidence extended his hand towards the statue and touched its base, when it happened the light illuminating it grew stronger and then faded back to normal, kind of like some type of response.


    - ¡°Today¡¯s youth does not disappoint! WONDERFUL!¡± The crowd started cheering and the prayers continued, one by one.


    ¡°Sivirud, I notice that they all have to touch the statue, why is that?¡± He paused with confusion.


    ¡°We have to prove our faith, the statue can tell our bad deeds and good deeds. The more suitable you are for candidate the more it will glow!¡± Makes sense. ¡°I can tell, you have a heart of gold, so show me when the time comes.¡± He patted me on the back.


    ¡®Sure¡­ if you mean aura of royalty and personality of a tyrant, I can do that¡­¡¯ I thought as I recalled my period of looking down on people, I still did it rather often. Bad habit I suppose.


    I looked back to the base once again, there was yet another person that was about to kneel.


    He readied himself for praying. ¡°Oh, do you hear this servant call? Bless me with your divine words, bless me with your monotony, tell me, uncover the secrets. Amatsukami, what can I do?¡± Ehh, all of these were different.


    - ¡°Wonderful! Every single contestant has their own way of praying, there is no better way to pray than to speak your heart out!¡± So that¡¯s how it is. ¡°Let us continue!¡±


    And as per advertised, it continued. How boring and monotone this was¡­ The golden ceiling with skylights was more interesting. And so, I paid attention to the actually interesting thing ?¡ª the ceiling.


    Time passed.


    - ¡°For yet another amazing prayer! A round of applause¡­


    - ¡°An amazing prayer indeed! ¡­


    - ¡°What an spectacular performance¡­


    The voices started to mesh with the background as I blankly stared at the ceiling, the superhuman concentration of looking at a single spot on the ceiling faded everything away, it warped and skewed the passing time. It was all relative.


    I kind of wondered what I was even doing, I should¡¯ve been having fun instead. Well I was having fun, but I mean actual fun¡­ Like, something great, not this¡­ Haa, being with Kuro suddenly sounded a lot more fun, hmm, or maybe just playing with Fenri would be more entertaining. I kind of wond?¡ª


    ¡°Aizen¡­¡±


    ¡°Uh wha, what?¡±


    The spot in the ceiling faded and time started flowing again. I was beyond confused, what had happened?  Sivirud was looking at me with slight worry.


    ¡°It¡¯s almost time¡­¡± He warned as he pointed to the arch-priest standing at the bottom of the statue.


    - ¡°We have seen some spectacular feats, haven¡¯t we?¡± The crowd cheered on. ¡°There is some strong contenders, what do you people say?¡±


    ¡°This is the best year!¡±


    ¡°All of them!¡±


    ¡°I am sure Marcus would be proud!¡±


    ¡°Thi?¡ª- ¡°Tha¡­


    The crowd became unintelligible shortly thereafter. The arch-priest listened for a few seconds as he nodded with contempt, the ¡°I am listening nod¡± as I would like to refer to it. This went on for as long as the crowd could speak, which was a few minutes.


    The arch-priest did a stern nod, one last time.


    - ¡°I see all of you spoke your hearts out.¡± They cheered again, it was getting annoying. ¡°But now into the great-apprentices! The ones that will hold the torch!¡±


    Instead of cheering the entire hall roared in excitement, my ears started to hurt. I started to hold the sides of my head simply because it was too loud. ¡®Seriously, what¡¯s so special about the greater-apprentices!¡¯ how annoying!


    - ¡°First off, let¡¯s start with Ghrungar¡¯s apprentice!¡± The crowd cheered. I heard something from slightly far away, someone that was dressed like Sivirud stood up along with an apprentice, was that it?


    I peeked once again to see how many spaces were left for my turn, I was the last one. I made eye contact with the old-fat man once again, he smirked but I didn¡¯t really care. In fact, I continued looking at him with emotionless eyes. Just focus a bit more¡­ yes¡­ I saw sweat start to go down his forehead. That was it... I am going to kill him!


    I did a rapid slight movement. ¡°Eek!¡± He squirmed like a worm.


    ¡°Perfect¡­¡± I muttered in satisfaction and re-directed my attention to the priest and his apprentice, it was a girl. She was taller than me and had short green hair, first time I saw such a hair color. Perhaps our hair colors weren¡¯t that odd?


    They started walking away until they started to go down into the horizon of the room. It didn¡¯t take a genius to figure out that those were some stairs. I heard the calm walking of the pair as they made their way to the legendary-altar. The altar of the so-called god, although to me he just seemed like an eccentric person. Nothing to say, I mean¡­ really¡­


    - ¡°Wow, I can already feel it from here! That aura of hers! You¡¯ve done well raising her Ghrungar!¡±


    ¡°But of course!¡± He instantly replied with an aura of confidentiality. ¡°I worked real hard you know?! To teach her the ways¡­ I am so proud of her¡­¡± Waa¡­ he was getting teary.


    ¡°Ghrungar¡­¡± She muttered with quivering lips.


    - ¡°Well, let us see what your apprentice can do!¡±


    ¡°W-wait!¡± The apprentice cried.


    ¡°You can do it, I have my faith in you!¡± Ghrungar cheered her on.


    All of the attention was now on her, she was sweating and trembling. In spite of that she knelt like every other apprentice and clasped her hands together.


    ¡°I-I¡­ I-I¡­¡± She was silent. ¡°... I h-have¡­ faith¡­¡± Her voice was shaky and kind of cute, as I eagerly waited to hear more she stood up.


    - ¡°What a short prayer! Will it be enough?!¡± Was he a priest or an announcer?


    The girl stood up and clumsily approached the statue, touching it without problem. It started to shine brightly, better than the other times I saw. The statue almost looked like a true divine altar!


    - ¡°My, what splendour! This is what makes a great-apprentice!¡± The crowd roared once again.


    The accompanying priest approached the girl and gave her a pat on the head.


    ¡°You¡¯ve done well¡­¡±


    ¡°I am so happy!¡± She glued herself to the priest.


    The ceremony continued, I noticed it was getting late. But it was whatever. I was starting to get hungry, how long would this last? I mean, it was pretty close to ending.


    - ¡°The future is bright! Next priest, Afghastin! One of our long time veterans!¡± The crowd started chanting his name. I saw him get up along with a man, he smirked at Sivirud, although avoided eye-contact with me.


    No words were said, the apprentice did a silent prayer and touched the statue. It shone brightly, brighter than the other times.


    - ¡°Amazing, I guess actions speak for themselves!¡± People cheered, it was already annoying¡­


    They went back to their seat and the fat man looked back at me, he smirked once again. Before I could get into predator mode I heard Sivirud sigh.


    ¡°I guess it¡¯s time.¡± We were next in line, right¡­


    - ¡°Last but not least! Sivirud! We all know him, he is a kind man that travels across the world! But we never knew he had an apprentice!¡± The crowd was silent. ¡°A girl with a heart of gold as he described it, someone that is willing to do anything for anyone, she was the chosen one!¡± The crowd started cheering.


    ¡°Sivirud!¡±


    ¡°Sivirud!!¡±


    ¡°Sivirud!¡±


    People started chanting his name as well, this time it was more powerful than the last one. Just who was Sivirud, he seemed to be the most widely known priest present¡­ The man looked at us with a face of disgust. I was a bit confused as I stood up. I mean, how would someone so important die because of it.


    I felt a pat on my back. ¡°It¡¯s okay, I know you can do it.¡± He said with confidence, I awkwardly smiled at him, should somebody tell him? Well, it wasn¡¯t on me.


    We started walking towards the end of the balcony, as we strolled through the fat-man¡¯s table, he opened his mouth.


    ¡°Aizen, I know your secrets, you won¡¯t get away with it. Amatsukami knows it all.¡±


    ¡°I see. Well, cya¡­¡± I waved away from him, the old-fart was up to something. I saw him deeply frown as I walked away, was that the wrong reply?


    ¡°It¡¯s okay Aizen.¡± He patted me as we walked. It felt kind of nice.


    I didn¡¯t reply and instead focused on descending the marble stairs that were in front of me. It kind of felt like how I imagined descending the stairs of a colosseum would be like. A huge crowd cheering for me and a priest awaiting my arrival.


    I was still accompanied by Sivirud but it was great to imagine he had absolutely nothing to do with it. A few steps and I was blinded by the sheer light that was entering the room, I didn¡¯t realize it before, but the dome seemed rather special and not golden. Some type of light was accumulated at the dome. Windows running throughout all the walls to illuminate the room. As soon as I finished descending the stairs all eyes were on me.


    I continued walking towards the statue until I stood in front of it, instantly I was struck by a heavy aura, almost like wind. I could tell, it didn¡¯t want me there. The arch-priest approached me as I checked out the egotistical founder¡¯s statue.


    ¡°Tell me, is there something you¡¯d like to say?¡± I turned to him. ¡°Ehh, you are?!¡± His voice was normal this time for some reason.


    ¡°I am Sivirud¡¯s apprentice! Witness me!¡± I claimed with a royal aura, people ooh¡¯d at me, like they should. The arch-priest seemed oddly sweaty, well, he wasn¡¯t of my concern. Now that I had gotten a closer look at him, he seemed incredibly old.


    - ¡°It¡¯s time for the prayer! Will Aizen, be able to do it?!¡± Did I ever tell him my name? And looks like he was back to normal.


    ¡°Ah, well, no time to worry about it. Here goes nothing¡­¡± I knelt in front of the statue, as I was doing so I noticed something. The statue had something odd, it wasn¡¯t divine. It had something else. I inspected it and¡­


    [Marble]


    How useful. The grandiose part of it wasn¡¯t the statue, it was something within it.


    ¡°I guess I will worry about it later¡­¡± I muttered to myself as I gathered breath for my prayer.


    ¡°Beatus vir qui suffert tentationem,


    Quoniqm cum probates fuerit accipient coronam vitae¡±


    I started butchering the prayer in a different language from what I remembered at the top of my head, the entire hall was silent.


    - ¡°When did you¡­ learn that¡­¡± I wasn¡¯t going to stop just because he was curious.


    ¡°Kyrie, fons bonitatis.


    Kyrie, ignis divine, eleison¡­


    Lord be gracious¡­¡±


    I finished my completely unintelligible prayed, the audience gasped. The arch-priest was sweating, Sivirud had his mouth wide open. Did I say something I shouldn¡¯t.


    - ¡°T-The language of God!¡± The arch-priest exclaimed at the top of his lungs with excitement, the entire hall burst into cheers and roars of praise. I was confused.


    ¡°I truly knew you could do it.¡± Sivirud spontaneously hugged me out of nowhere.


    ¡°I DEMAND PROOF!¡± Someone shouted from the balcony atop of me. Looking up it was no one but?¡ª


    ¡°Afghastin!¡± Sivirud shouted back at me.


    ¡°If she is truly the chosen one she should touch the statue! It¡¯s a code!¡±


    Sivirud looked at me with a troubled face. ¡°The statue judges your past, and present, it judges your entire being.¡±


    ¡°I figured¡­¡± I shrugged. ¡°Yeah I can do it.¡±


    Before the arch-priest could say anything I approached the statue, I could tell. It really didn¡¯t want me. But I was Aizen, some lowsy statue couldn¡¯t decide if I could touch it or not!


    I extended my hand, and as I was about to touch it a flash of lightning flew out of the statue and repelled my hand. Kind of like some type of shield, it was painful. My entire hand felt a burning sensation.


    ¡°See, she is the devil herself!¡± The entire crowd gasped, the arch-priest however?¡ª he awkwardly approached me and leaned into my ear with difficulty.


    ¡°You can do it mister legendary dragon, I¡¯ve seen your wrath. I¡¯ve witnessed you.¡±


    I became stiff. ¡°What are you.¡± He smiled at me, I noticed he was that person, the only one I left alive.


    ¡°I believe in forgiveness, prove it to me.¡± For some reason, I was dumbstruck, I had shattered his entire kingdom, his entire life. And yet those eyes of his seemed to hold nothing but praise for me, even if it wasn¡¯t the right type of praise.


    I started laughing.


    ¡°What¡¯s so funny?!¡± The old-fart asked in annoyance.


    ¡°Just witness me!¡±


    I forcefully started to push my hand against the statue, it was painful. My entire hand received shocks of pain. The great-hall started to shake and tremble, I knew what was going to happen.


    ¡°I am Aizen! Bow before me!¡± I spoke to the statue as I placed my utmost force towards it. I heard glass shatter, I could tell what was going to happen next. I poured mana into my hand and started to focus on the surrounding ambient mana and its disturbances.


    ¡°There is only one of me, and a lot of you¡­¡± I said as I spoke to the statue, it was just an inanimate object of the founder, it couldn¡¯t dictate me, it was just something manufactured. I was unique!


    Flash!


    My vision was covered white as an ear-splitting sound rang across the hall. And yet I kept pushing, it hit something, but it was small. It was tube shaped, I held it out of instinct. It felt warm. As soon as I got a firm grasp on it the light faded.


    It was a katana, in a black and white faded scabbard, thunder patterns ran across it. It was ornamented with a golden rear-guard and black-laced handle. The katana had a rather unusual aura to it, it exhibited loyalty and power, it was the first time I saw an object like that. It also had an even stronger feeling of divinity than the statue itself.


    As I looked around the entire hall was silent. The fat-man was staring at the katana with wide-open eyes. Sivirud was looking at me with worry, or rather at my arm.


    I looked one more time, my hand holding the katana was covered in blood.


    ¡°I guess¡­ I overdid it¡­ heh¡­¡± I muttered. I silently raised the katana as a triumph, even while bathed in blood, it was still an achievement.


    The arch-priest smiled at me and faced the audience.


    - ¡°A heart of gold, an insurmountable force to exist. A humble yet strong girl! She has it all! Through unwavering will she has obtained one of Amatsukami¡¯s gift for us, said to exist in legends! This girl is a legend!¡±


    [Title unlocked: Legend]


    Your feats speak for themselves, generations of church members shall speak about the priest of blood & thunder as if it was yesterday.


    ¡°Did I just become Kuro, well no ma?¡ª


    ¡°Wooo!¡±


    ¡°The prophecy has been fulfilled!¡±


    ¡°She is the one!¡±


    The crowd as thrilled for me, I was smirking with an ear-to-ear smile. It was truly fun!


    ¡°Preposterous! A demon-like you shouldn¡¯t be able to do that! The statue is completely gone!¡± I turned around to the priest in denial. The statue was indeed completely gone, not even dust was left.


    ¡°Then, touch the sword.¡± I held it out to him. I knew what was going to happen. But he didn¡¯t.


    The man approached the sword and extended his hand with confidence, as soon as he touched it the expected happened.


    ¡°Ha, see, it¡¯s rig?¡ª¡± He started to uncontrollably tremble until foam came out of it¡¯s mouth.


    This was truly a disgustingly good sword, too good in fact.


    [Zetsuma bone-splitter ?¡ª Divine++ ?¡ª Named by its owner who gave it a lot of affection and polished by hundreds of years of prayers. Can reproduce status effects on-touch that the owner has suffered from during their lifetime.] The elf had come in useful.


    As I smiled to myself, the crowd cheered for me once again.


    [Title unlocked: Head-priest,]


    Be it through lies, be it through truths, your status speaks for itself.


    I continued to proudly smile, it was a fun day!


    As I internally praised myself I saw the crowd start to shuffle around and mutter among themselves. Something seemed to be making a commotion.


    ¡°A necromancer!¡± Desperate echoes went throughout the hall. ¡°We have discovered a necromancer!¡± it was an adventurer.


    The crowd started to get more and more uneasy. I had no idea, so I looked towards the person that probably knew what they meant. The arch-priest.


    ¡°How do you want to deal with it, head-priest of the capital?¡± He kindly asked me. Oh, so it was like that.


    As I thought he held out his hand to me in front of my mouth.


    - ¡°What are you?¡ª oh¡­¡± It amplified my voice. Well, I mean, if it was going to be me doing things, and I was now part of the church then¡­ Might as well commit¡­ Haa¡­ this is truly going to be fun.


    - ¡°I will be facing this necromancer head to head! I will eradicate the darkness once in for all!¡± The hall for the last time exploded with happiness.


    Alice.

 (Chpt. 84) Runaway

    Alice.


    ?Yami?


    ¡°Are you perhaps, resisting?¡± I felt threatened...


    What did he even mean by ¡®resisting¡¯? I simply said what in a clearly altered tone. I did not work 6 hours for nothing you know! Was this person joking with me? No, that¡¯s a distasteful joke, this elf was evil just like all the other ones.


    ¡°Are all elves evil?¡± I decided to finally ask.


    His fake smile flinched for a bit. ¡°Do all humans think like you? Of course they do, I am simply doing my job.¡±


    ¡°Ha?¡± Was he seriously going to complain about racism? I mean, I am just making an assumption based of my sole experience with them, I guess it kind of is, but it¡¯s justified you know?


    ¡°All the elves I¡¯ve met are just like you, nothing but a pain in the back!¡± I roared at him in frustration. Last time Aizen wiped the elf¡¯s memory because she simply could not be bothered.


    ¡°Preposterous! I am simply following the rules!¡±


    ¡°Oh yeah¡­ I met this elf teacher once¡­ He quite liked being aggressive with kids. Although I don¡¯t know what happened to him¡­¡±


    The elf was trembling. ¡°I-I¡­ Did not¡­ come here¡­ for you to mock my race!¡± The veins on his forehead were visible and his brows were curling in.


    ¡°Ehh¡­ I was just saying you know. No need to be so mad about it, I just thought it was worth mentioning.¡± The elf accommodated his glasses and tried to be serious once again.


    ¡°Hmph. Well, regardless I will be taking the armor.¡±


    ¡°Who said you could take it?¡± I wasn¡¯t one to start a conflict, but if they were going to take something I worked so hard on, then¡­


    ¡°So, you are resisting?¡±


    ¡°Hmmm, that depends. What happens if I am?¡± I could probably bite the bullet here if it was worth it. I wasn¡¯t going to let my stuff be unfairly taken away.


    He smirked. ¡°Well, perhaps you will become an enemy of king Gazel,¡± I didn¡¯t really like him, so¡­ I mean, that sounded kind of fine for the time being. ¡°Your life or your creation.¡±


    ¡°You know, I value metals more than my life at times you know?¡± Was I supposed to make a decision there or something?


    He clicked his tongue. ¡°So? What will it be?¡±


    The crowd started to bicker and chatter started to feel the venue. A knight rushed into our little confrontation, he was visibly sweating. He approached the elf who was just as confused and whispered into his ear. His eyes went wide.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°There is a necromancer in town!¡±


    People started to panic, and push each other around. I took my chance and touched all of the armors on the ground and placed them in my inventory.


    ¡°Are you opposing?!¡± The elf unexpectedly yelled.


    ¡°Hey, Ari. Do you care about what happens?¡± She looked surprised for a second but ultimately shrugged. I guess it didn¡¯t really matter, necromancer or not. But first, maybe I could buy some time to make things easier.


    ¡°Elf, I am curious. Who is the necromancer the guard speaks of? The last thing I want is for them to take such an expensive item!¡± I decided to simply play along. I gestured Jer to come towards me as the Elf demanded explanations from the guard.


    Jer hurried in spite of his rather bad state. ¡°What is that you n?¡ª ¡° I interrupted his speech by giving him the new chest piece, well it was an abdominal piece if one wanted to be specific about it.


    ¡°Put it on.¡± He decisively nodded.


    ¡°What do you think you are doing MIssy?!¡± The elf exclaimed in rage. ¡°Your tactics won¡¯t work on me, give it back!¡± He lunged himself at Jer. He was frozen in shock, the elf landed right on top of him, toppling him to the ground and making a horrible crack sound.


    ¡°¡±Oh no¡­¡±¡± Ari and I said in unison.


    ¡°Aha!¡± The elf declared victory. ¡°I will be taking this along with the other pieces as well!¡± I guess he was pretty frustrated with the whole race conversation.


    Jer gave me a helpless glance on the ground, we all knew what had happened. I simply nodded at him and made an Aizen-esque grin. It was time.


    ¡°Eeeeek!¡± I screeched, albeit it came out as a poor shout. ¡°An undead!¡± I pointed at Jer.


    ¡°IT¡¯S AN UNDEAD!¡± Ari also shouted, she also came out as funny. ¡°Please protect me Dark Shadow!¡±  She hid behind me as Jer¡¯s body crackled.


    ¡°What are you two saying ?¡ª oh, I get it. Losing that armor must be quite harsh for both of you. I get it¡­¡± The elf sighed as he removed himself from Jer. ¡°Sorry about tha?¡ª


    He froze as he saw all the bone splinters on the ground, the empty abdomen on the armor. Jer groaned like a true undead and looked at the elf with a vengeful stare. I saw a red glint run across his visor for a second, a true slayer.


    ¡°YOU DARE ATTACK THE HERO?!¡± His inhumane voice made everyone panic. His armor rattled around and his torso separated from his legs. His body was vibrating as he shakily walked towards the elf with nothing but his arms.


    The elf was frozen in place.


    ¡°That¡¯s MINE!¡± Jer pointed at the armor as he dragged his sword with his other hand. It was a horror movie scene. The elf shook and dropped the armor on the ground, turning to look at me in a panic.


    ¡°Y-You, are also an adventurer right?!¡± I nodded with confusion. ¡°D-Do something!¡± Aah, right.


    I sighed and started preparing my chant.


    ¡°I summon thee, the lonely and miserable salamander! He, who instills fears on others!¡± A summoning circle started to form on the ground. And along with a cloud of smoke, a gargantuan silhouette appeared.


    ¡°WHO ARE YOU CALLING MISERABLE!¡± Of course, everyone else heard a draconic roar.


    ¡°Hello Fifi!¡± Long time no see my lizard!


    ¡°Tch, and here I was in the middle of eating that priest! That mountain has a lot of annoying visitors!¡± Aha¡­ ¡°So, what is it this time?¡± Looks like he had time to cool down.


    ¡°G-Girl, what is that?!¡± The elf asked in a panic at the towering figure that raised above the buildings. He was a lot bigger than I remembered him.


    ¡°My dragon!¡± I guess he was my second dragon¡­


    ¡°A¡­¡± I broke the elf. ¡°AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-¡± He started screaming and trying to run for his life, panic ensued and people around me started to shout.


    I felt a hand on my shoulder, it was Al¡¯s.


    ¡°I am sorry about your father¡­¡± I could smell him¡­ he reeked of alcohol.


    ¡°I-It¡¯s fine¡­¡± I got his hand off, it was now or never to get my armor back.


    The elf tripped. ¡°You won¡¯t be getting away!¡± A demonic aura filled the street. It was Jer¡¯s, awa he truly was strong!


    ¡°Ah, Fifi. Kill the undead!¡± He looked at me with perplexion.


    ¡°You mean to kill my companion?¡± I guess he could tell Jer was also a summon.


    ¡°Just try to!¡± The dragon nodded and tried to step on Jer, even though he was nothing but a torso at this point, he was awe-inspiring. The huge claw stepped on him and made a horrible creaking sound.


    ¡°DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT TAKES TO BE KING?!¡±  His powerful voice resonated throughout the entirety of the town. The pressure on the atmosphere increased, Fifi started to shake and got pushed away.


    CRASH


    ¡°You think I am a pushover?!¡± Fifi declared as he started to blow fire into Jer, luckily people were already far away from him. However...


    ¡°NO!¡± I shrieked. WHY?! The forge was blown to bits by the retarded lizard¡¯s body. ¡°AGH! Whatever!¡± I sprinted atop my armor and grabbed Jer¡¯s legs while we were at it. It was quite awkward but in chaos nothing makes sense.


    ¡°Yami what now?¡± Ari asked as the loud voices of agony screamed, there was a fire on some houses for whatever reason. People were fighting, the sky was starting to be filled with ash¡­ What was happening?


    ¡°Survive¡­¡± I concisely answered. The buildings started to melt due to the dragon¡¯s incandescent breath. Smoke started to rise¡­ ¡°This is the point of no return¡­¡± I sighed. ¡°So much for a piece of armor¡­¡±


    ¡°Yami, how about¡­ we run away?¡± Ari spontaneously suggested. It was perfect.


    I grabbed her hand and looked at my faithful summon. ¡°Fifi, we are leaving!¡±


    ¡°What now?¡±


    ¡°Shut up and lean your head.¡± The dragon paused and looked at me. ¡°We are leaving right now!¡±


    ¡°Pff, Hahahaha!¡± He started laughing.


    ¡°... Unsummon¡­¡±


    ¡°No wai?¡ª wait?¡ª WA?¡ª¡± Fifi disappeared into the circle as the flames started to get out of control.


    ¡°IT¡¯S MY TRIUMPH, DRAGON! ELF YOU ARE NE?¡ª


    ¡°Ah, shut up already! Unsummon!¡±


    ¡°Eh, what is this? Wha?¡ª ¡° Jer also got swallowed by a circle. His legs oddly enough were as well¡­


    ¡°Yami¡­ what do we do?¡± Ari fearfully looked around, trying to look for a solution. We were in the middle of a cloud of flames and no one to be seen anymore. Al seemed to have run away a while ago.


    ¡°Ari look at you, and me. Do you know what we are wearing?¡±


    ¡°Um¡­ expensive items?¡±


    ¡°Very much so! And these expensive items don¡¯t get affected by puny flames!¡± I WAS BLUFFING.


    But we had to get out of here, the situation escalated out of proportion, however¡­ I was unsure how. A part of me told me that going through the flames was feasible, and the other one simply told me to¡­ cry about the metal that was gone in the forge. Both of them were bad, but luckily I had my cloak back from unsummoning Jer.


    I put on my cloak yet again, and gave Ari hers¡¯. Weirdly enough the cape was on my hand before I realized it, but it felt natural so I didn¡¯t question it. Ari wore it, and I got wrapped mine around me. Ari soon followed looking at my strategy.


    ¡°Okay¡­¡± I sighed as I took a look around, once we were out of the flames we would be in the spotlight. We had to get out in a fast manner¡­ fast?¡ª


    ¡°Hey Yami, look!¡± Ari pointed at a house, it was partially destroyed. But we noticed the alley that it led through. ¡°Let¡¯s go through there.¡±


    ¡°Hmhm!¡± I allowed Ari to take the lead as I looked behind me to be sad about the forge, something so precious gone, why did things need to be like this¡­


    Just imagine all the precious metals that were there, every single smith that worked there, why, why, why¡­ Why did it have to happen in this way? It was my fault, I had destroyed a forge¡­ It was entirely my fault¡­ I could¡¯ve done better¡­ and yet I didn¡¯t¡­ Why did I have to resolve things in such a matter¡­ If it weren¡¯t for the armor¡­ I was selfish. I knew the answer, and yet I won¡¯t admit it¡­ It¡¯s my fa?¡ª


    ¡°Yami, aren¡¯t you coming?¡±


    ¡°Ah sorry¡­¡±


    Ari was already on the midway point, and meanwhile, I was standing there lamenting my deeds. With a decisive nod, I started to walk past the rubble and ducking below it, eventually getting to where Ari was.


    We continued to weave through it without a problem, albeit I still couldn¡¯t get the sadness out of my head. Something about it was sad. It felt like destroying a part of blacksmithing history, and yet¡­ I was the one that had done it.


    Eventually, we found ourselves at an intersection of alleys that were connected with the destroyed house. I could hear the discussions of the people as well as some chanting, probably water for extinguishing the flames or something, I kind of wondered what could we do¡­


    ¡°Let¡¯s just go back to the inn¡­¡± I started walking but I felt Ari¡¯s hand on my arm. She was looking at me with confusion and a frown. ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°We cannot go back you know?¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± What was she on about now.


    She smirked. ¡°You see, I left a bunch of torn cloth there! We are dead now.¡± She seemed oddly proud of it, but why did she do that.


    ¡°That¡¯s a bad thing no?¡± I asked the obvious.


    ¡°Well, would you rather the elf come to chase you for your talent?¡± I shook my head instantly. ¡°If it¡¯s known that you can produce that quality they might try to enslave you or something!¡± Ah¡­ ¡°Therefore we cannot be seen in town anymore.¡±


    ¡°Then what?¡± She tilted her head.


    ¡°Well, I thought you¡¯d have some type of disguise, you had your rings after all¡­¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t have anything like that.¡±


    ¡°Eh?!¡± Ari started to panic. ¡°How, can you?¡ª no, wait.. No¡­ I though?¡ª no¡­¡± I didn¡¯t blame her, she didn¡¯t know that much about me in spite of everything.


    ¡°Can¡¯t you look at your dungeon rewards or something! I heard about a disguise item coming up in the rewards once!¡± Ari suggested in a panic but I shrugged.


    ¡°There is nothing but gems with energy in there, they are only useful for enchanters¡­ enchanters¡­¡±


    ¡°Yami, it¡¯s fine¡­ It¡¯s my fault¡­¡±


    ¡°No¡­ enchanters¡­¡±


    ¡°Yami¡­ I¡­¡±


    I looked at her with sparkly eyes. ¡°I have enchanter skill!¡± Did I ever tell her? I think I didn¡¯t.


    ¡°That is?! How?! No¡­ when?!¡± I didn¡¯t tell her¡­


    ¡°I¡­ I just never used it I suppose¡­¡±


    ¡°How do you even have that?! It¡¯s a class, not a skill!¡± Ah¡­


    ¡°I¡­ It happened I guess¡­¡± I awkwardly shrugged trying to think of an excuse.


    She sighed. ¡°Forget it, nothing ever makes sense when it¡¯s about you¡­¡± Sorry¡­


    Ari paused for a second.


    ¡°What are you going to do with the gems? I mean, disguise isn¡¯t well¡­ achievable?¡±


    ¡°Hm?¡± What was she talking about.


    ¡°According to a few guidelines and such, there are achievable enchantments and unachievable ones. And well, you can guess where disguise falls¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± Was it always like that? I mean, I recall it being one of those enchants you used for sniping events and such ?¡ª one didn¡¯t want to get hunted afterward or it lost the fun.


    I shrugged. ¡°We¡¯ll see¡­¡± The burden of destroying the forge weighed on me heavily, if it wasn¡¯t possible it simply wasn¡¯t, there was no use in overthinking whether it would work or wouldn¡¯t work. Well first things first, something to enchant, a ring? I mean, I liked the idea of having like three rings per finger each with different passive effects, it sounded cool. But inconvenient.


    With a sigh of defeat, I browsed my inventory, so much for collecting stuff and a lot of it was armor sets I did not recognize anymore. I kept looking under different sections, the menu was surprisingly chaotic, but I finally found things under the scrap section.


    ¡°Awa¡­¡± I froze, it was full of accessories and stuff. Why were they labeled as scrap?! Ahhh, whatever¡­ I pulled out two chainmail collars, or were they chain collars? Well, whatever.


    ¡°You are going to enchant those?¡± Ari asked with curiosity.


    ¡°Well¡­ yeah¡­¡± Did people do it differently?


    ¡°Don¡¯t you like need a special mana condensing room or something? Since they take quite a lot of mana and such?¡± Oh, so that¡¯s how it was.


    ¡°Hm, well¡­ I don¡¯t know how much mana does one need for such a thing, but I think I can do it just fine¡­ I think¡­¡± I let out an awkward dry laugh as I recalled how I fainted back in the forge.


    ¡°Well, I suppose¡­¡± She had doubt written on her face, but well¡­ she didn¡¯t question it.


    ¡°Alright then¡­¡± I tightly held one of the collars and looked at it. ¡°Enchant!¡± Was it? I remember it being kind of like a voice command.


    Attack


    Defense


    Misc


    Useless


    Huh, yeah it was still the same. A window with four options, and naturally it would be under the useless category since everything else was battle oriented in some way.


    ¡°Y-Yami, what is that floating square?!¡± She pointed at the window that was in front of my face.


    ¡°The enchantment window?¡± I tilted my head.


    ¡°Wait¡­ Hmm¡­ I¡­ I have never seen enchanting in my life. But I did hear enchanters liked being all alone when doing their thing because they could potentially lose concentration, but I always thought that was dumb. I mean, the best blacksmiths always made public feats of precision! So, how come an enchanter couldn¡¯t do it?! Even alchemists could¡­¡±


    ¡°Maybe because it was that easy¡­¡± Ari nodded with visible discontent, but it was not aimed at me. Wa, I wonder if she had something happen with any of them.


    Well, onto the window. Did I have to touch it, or think? I tried touching it and¡­ the section lit up and opened a new menu. I started scrolling down the extremely specific things, such as: death effect, destruction effect, particle effects.


    Oh, what¡¯s this?!


    Item appearance change ?¡ª 300MN


    That was a new one, appearance change?! This wasn¡¯t disguise, you are telling me I no longer had to wear a skirt? I mean, it was comfortable but I still didn¡¯t like it. Could I finally wear a trench coat and stuff?! No, no Yami. Focus.


    There was also one that read item hit sounds, I thought it would be interesting but didn¡¯t look at it.


    I continued scrolling down and there it was.


    Disguise ?¡ª 7000MN Gemstone Required


    There was also a lesser version with half the mana cost, but I didn¡¯t think that would be useful.


    I sighed and took out a gem from the pouch. And gestured Ari to come near me, she clumsily and awkwardly got close to me, I mean I guess she could see the menu so maybe that was new to her.


    ¡°Um, Yami, can you read what the thing says?¡±


    ¡°Hmm?¡± What was she on about?


    ¡°Well, enchanters study linguistics from a young age, it is said the greater they are at it, the more accurate they become with their enchantments¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh, so like¡­ They can¡¯t guarantee an effect?¡± She nodded. ¡°So they probably hit the menu randomly and try to notice a pattern¡­¡± It sounded like something stupid¡­ and yet it might¡¯ve been possible, well things shall wait until then.


    ¡°Well Ari, hold this thing for a second.¡± It was the cursed gem. ¡°I am wondering if you can purify it or something.¡±


    ¡°I mean if it¡¯s just that¡­¡± She held it in her hand. ¡°This will take a bit, why do you want it for that.¡±


    ¡°Well, I figured if the gem was cursed it might give some type of handicap.¡± She nodded. But I also kind of wondered what would happen if I used a cursed one and wore it for myself. I mean, last I checked curses weren¡¯t that bad¡­


    I grabbed yet another stone. I felt it disappear from my hand and I felt goosebumps all over my body, sweat ran down my cheek. It was weird, I sighed and the menu closed down. Was that it?


    I took a look at the collar, it was in a slightly silvery-dark tinge. But it did have the effect no?


    [Quicksilver Collar ?¡ª Cursed ?¡ª  Effects: Disguise.


    Perhaps it isn¡¯t as mortal as it is said to be, it doesn¡¯t check temperature nor change form. Curse: Prone to failure of effect activation.]


    Well, this sure wasn¡¯t very reliable! Also isn''t quicksilver... Ah, whatever!


    I still put it on my arm and wrapped it like a hairband twice to make it a nice bracelet.


    [Title Unlocked: Cursemancer]


    Curses are nice when they do nothing but help its user! They have a purpose, but if they can achieve an even greater one through the user, why not help? Evil will help Evil after all.


    ¡°Hey!¡± What was with that description?! Although, if I got it right, it wouldn¡¯t affect me. I inspected it yet again.


    [Quicksilver Collar ?¡ª Curse Blessed ?¡ª Effects: Disguise.]


    That was new¡­ Why did it also say blessed?! Well, I guess it meant a good thing, no?


    ¡°Hey Yami I am done with the thi?¡ª Eh, why are you wearing a cursed item¡­¡± She was looking at me with confusion. ¡°I mean, it seems to be stable in a way, but I can still tell it¡¯s cursed, it gives me a bad feeling¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡± So it was still bad.


    ¡°But I have to say, normally curses give me bad omens, and yet this one is well¡­ Cursed, but it doesn¡¯t feel like it has evil intentions. Like¡­ how to explain it, curses have ill-intent and blessings have good intent, but this curse, while I can tell, is negative, isn¡¯t actively trying to hurt its user like the other ones I have seen¡­ Now that I think about it, when you held the cursed sword it was kind of the same.¡± Eh¡­ ¡°Well, perhaps death herself gets benefits from curses¡­¡±


    ¡°Hey! Just because I am unlucky doesn''t mean I am death!¡±


    She smiled. ¡°I know. I was just teasing you.¡± Ha¡­ ¡°Anyway, here is your um¡­ enchanting gem.¡±


    I looked at it, it was pristine and totally clear, it was even shiny for that matter. Weird. I received it from Ari with slight fear, i mean what if I infected it? But that wasn¡¯t all of it, I also had to enchant it¡­ I¡­ I wasn¡¯t ready.


    After fearfully holding the gem in my hand for a few seconds I finally gave in, what was the worst that could happen? Well ?¡ª everything could go bad! But that wasn¡¯t what I meant. The odd feeling of having my mana taken away was not something I was used to! Also, seven-thousand was quite a lot.


    I sighed in defeat, and simply had to do it. While I thought it was a bit extreme the idea of practically vanishing was quite appealing.It was something that had to be done, or at least I thought so.


    I sighed and navigated the menu once again.


    Disguise ?¡ª 7000MN Gemstone Required


    There it was¡­ It was quite daunting to be honest, something about it made me hesitate. Was it the horrible feeling of enchanting? It was rather awkward, kind of made me wonder if there was  a way to store mana or something, kind of like a mana stone. Hah, well something to ask Ari for later. Now, I have to do this¡­ even if it¡¯s quite extremist.


    It was something that had to be done. Defeated once again, I pressed the button. A shiver shot up my spine and I shook for a bit. Ah, that sensation was cursed¡­ Well, was this a backfire for my nonexistent bad actions? I was a demon lord based on reactions of others¡¯. Well, whatever.


    I looked at the collar, it was shiny and seemed to actually be enchanted. I honestly thought it would have something that made it look actually enchanted, but now that I thought about things it was simply normal.


    I gave Ari her collar, and she wore it as usual.


    ¡°Hmm, how do you use disguise?¡± Ari suddenly asked.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you have to think about it?¡± Well, at least I thought it was like that.


    Ari got a pensive look on her face and started muttering things, I guess that was her way of imagining things. Which was fine, everyone had their own way of doing things.


    I turned away and started to think I wanted to be unrecognizable!


    ¡°Maybe¡­¡± Yes, that would be it.


    [Disguise limitation¡ª Gender is unchangeable.]


    I¡­ I figured¡­ Of course things wouldn¡¯t come so easy! Aaaaah!


    ¡°Hey, Yami how do I look?¡± I turned around to look at Ari.


    I paused as I looked at her. She had bangs and was still just as tall. Her short haircut made her cuter, her eyes well¡­ They didn¡¯t change color.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think, you are still well¡­ pretty recognizable?¡± Her eyes widened.


    ¡°I¡­ I mean¡­ Is it bad?¡± W-Wait! Why was she teary eyed!?


    ¡°It¡¯s fine¡­¡± I patted her in an attempt to make her feel better.


    Upon closer inspection, Ari looked a bit older, and her eyes were kind of droopy. Although that kind of made her even cuter, I wonder if she took the appearance of someone she knew? Oh well, nothing much to think about.


    ¡°Hey Yami¡­ About our clothes¡­¡± Ah¡­ ¡°I heard there is an enchantment to change an item¡¯s appearance!¡± Ah?¡ª eh?


    ¡°Yeah I mean, there is¡­¡± But the question was¡­ Would I not faint this time?


    I sighed. ¡°Worst case scenario we just wear different cloaks¡­¡± She nodded.


    Well now onto my appearance I wanted to be as close to my old self, but I suppose female version would do? Well, ahh¡­ I wish I could be male at least one last time, while I can say it¡¯s fun to be a girl¡­ It just¡­ Aaah! How annoying!


    After grabbing my head in frustration I finally got to thinking. Long black silky hair, puffy cheeks small nose, dark eyes?¡ª Eh? What was this strange feeling?! Akin to something coming out¡­ NO?¡ª that sounds wrong. I mean, akin to something¡­ whatever¡­


    ¡°Em, Yami¡­¡± Yeah¡­ I already knew what it was. ¡°Your ears.¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± I was thinking about my tail, but now that I think about it they were a duo.


    I touched the top of my head, and while I couldn''t see them, they were slightly shorter than usual and felt pretty soft and fluffy. My tail is well¡­ I couldn¡¯t see it due to the back cloak, but I also felt as if it was shorter. My height was a bit shorter as well, I didn¡¯t think about that one though.


    Well, seeing Ari did not say anything about my appearance, I assume it was fine. I sighed and looked at the ground, there was a puddle of water there. I wonder how I would l?¡ª


    ¡°Eh?¡± How?!


    Alice.

 (Special) New Beginnings: A Brighter Tomorrow

    Azrie


    I spent so long in my delusions, that I forgot what was important. For a return to the basics. Since I had long forgotten what the story was all about.


    This special is not relevant to the story.


    ?K-Yami?


    How long has it been since I got here? I couldn¡¯t remember. One year, two years? Sinking deeply into the bed I furrowed my brows. A world of dreams, where I could have any type of metal, where one could practically be god, or in my case. God of metal?


    I had to admit, it sounded nice. No?¡ª it sounded amazing. A blissful title.


    But at the same time, that was all. A literal sandbox of sorts. Nothing to really do or look forward to, or rather simply put. There was no real reason to it. Smithing was fun. But being chased for being good at smithing. Not so much. Enchanting most of the time was done in automatic, and it hadn¡¯t changed from the game.


    Select an effect and enchant it at a cost. It was simple. I hadn¡¯t tried alchemy just yet. But I wasn¡¯t looking forward to it that much. It just wasn¡¯t the same as weapon manufacturing. Yes I was lazy after coming here, it just felt too real.


    Too many things to look at, too many things to think about. Chainmail armor for Aizen. That was of course too much work, sure I had said yes. But having to make each scale individually? Those types of armors historically took weeks if not months to manufacture.


    Though I am unsure of how closely ¡®everything¡¯ resembled real world physics.


    I felt lethargic laying on my bed. Everything felt pointless, church worries? Realistically speaking Aizen could probably blow it up without too much trouble, at least if given enough equipment anyway. Even if there was someone clad in relic gear at max level. It wouldn¡¯t matter.


    There was no real threat to my life. Or to anyone¡¯s. Ari¡¯s perhaps? But, we could protect her. We were protecting her at this very moment, even though I had saved her on a whim, I appreciated her.


    We were all family, and that¡¯s all that mattered. Realistically speaking I shouldn¡¯t have felt depressed or even sad about it. But everything felt so, purposeless. Why go explore if there was nothing to gain? I was quite rich from what I understood. I could be a shut-in at an inn for a long time.


    Fifi had grown into a much more fearsome dragon due to my contract, and Jer was relatively strong too. So it¡¯s not like I could be threatened by most people into submission. Disguising who I am? It wasn¡¯t too comfortable. Though, I thought I had gotten over it.


    She was gone. I looked at my hand, the light from the closed curtains barely reflecting upon a silvery ring that was shaped after a tree-branch, it had a green gem atop of it. Eli. I should¡¯ve been over it a long time ago, but I wanted her to see me. I wanted her to see what I had become.


    Not me, but the things I had accomplished. I felt abandoned¡­


    I wasn¡¯t strong, I was a weak person, I just wanted to. See her. I just wanted to see her again, it was a small hope that I kept close to my heart. But after-years of adventuring? Surely not. Not a trace, not even a signal. I held hope, surely. Aizen had talked about someone called Amatsukami, so I wasn¡¯t the only one. Aizen might¡¯ve been the only one?¡ª No, perhaps not either.


    Though she didn¡¯t miss anyone from the old world. I certainly would regret seeing her cry again, I didn¡¯t want her to be alone again. Even though really¡­ I did feel alone.


    The warmth from the interactions with Aizen and Ari was beginning to fade. I was truly unique, no one to understand me. Even if there was another player out there, would they understand? Well maybe?


    No, it wasn¡¯t about some other player. It wasn¡¯t about that at all, not about understanding or my relation to the game, it was different?¡ª


    It was¡­ It was about¡­ I¡­


    I closed my eyes shut, and my lips trembled for a second.


    It was about Eli¡­ it was about her. My diseased companion...


    I missed her. I missed being able to talk without worry... No that wasn¡¯t it. I?¡ª


    Being understood? No.


    The game? Also no.


    And then it clicked.


    I simply wasn¡¯t me. I was Kuro, but not me. Me, name really wasn¡¯t relevant. But did Aizen or Ari know I was basically permanently hospitalized? Of course not! How could they? It was completely different. That was it, the source of my sadness.


    Eli is the only one that truly knows. And that¡­  I quivered. That?¡ª


    Why? Why wasn¡¯t she here?¡ª it was unfair.


    Unfair for her¡­


    Unfair for¡­ me¡­


    I-I didn¡¯t want to be alone.


    A life without seeing her again.


    It was a painful life.


    I wanted to see her, I wanted to smile at her, hug her, tell her how much I missed her. I¡­ Why was it so unfair? I had died and I was given a second chance. Why wasn¡¯t she given the same thing? Why didn¡¯t she get a second chance? It was¡­ unfair¡­ Why did things need to be this way.


    Fate? Was it fate? The cause of everything? Why, why me? Why did she not get the same opportunity?! It didn¡¯t make sense. I was alone in this big wide world. It simply?¡ª it made me mad, angry, upset, every emotion I could experience.


    It was all there. My eyes began itching as I tried to stop my tears from coming, but they just wouldn¡¯t stop. What did I do to deserve this?¡ª NO what did she do to deserve this?! To deserve such a rotten fate?!


    Eli, why couldn¡¯t I see you again¡­ Why did you die¡­ It was my fault wasn¡¯t it?


    Playing with me so much, accompanying me for so long.


    Surely that had an effect on your health.


    Surely that had affected you.


    And now, there were consequences. The consequences of my actions and nagging. No, she was the one nagging. Why did I have to catch her attention? I didn¡¯t know, I didn¡¯t want to know. Perhaps she would¡¯ve been okay if she hadn¡¯t met me. Perhaps she¡¯d be smiling for others ?¡ª sharing her joy, her happiness and her very passion for adventuring. Instead? She put so much effort in me. So much effort spent. Just for me¡­


    It was all for me.


    And in the end, I couldn¡¯t even say a final goodbye. In the end, I just had to swallow it. In the end, I couldn¡¯t make her happy or at the very least, make her smile in her final moments¡­


    It was all fate.


    In the end¡­


    I should¡¯ve been the one to?¡ª


    The door clicked open.


    ¡°Hey, K-Yami! Let¡¯s go see the festival tonight!¡± A bubbly voice entered my ears. ¡°It¡¯s going to be fun, I promise.¡± It was Aizen.


    I briefly froze before hastily wiping my eyes. She couldn¡¯t see me like this. However, Aizen didn¡¯t continue talking. Had she even entered the room? I hurriedly finished removing the tears from my face as I looked up.


    Aizen was standing there, in front of me. Her Amber eyes slightly glowing from the curtain light, she was dressed in the same outfit I had given her, a coat and some tightly fitting pants. Her silvery hair glowed from the light of the open entrance. But her expression? I could briefly see it, but she looked. Angry?


    ¡°Kuro.¡± Her tone was grave. ¡°Who did this to you?¡± Her voice carried anger that I hadn¡¯t heard in a long time.


    She approached me, her steps slightly rushed as she placed her hand on my cheek slowly caressing it before finally her thumb wiped the tears of my eye. Her hand was soft and warm, but her face was anything but warm.


    ¡°Who did it?¡± She hissed.


    I sighed seeing Aizen¡¯s reaction. She truly was¡­ too good for me. After a brief eye-contact I opened my mouth.


    ¡°No one did¡­ Oh, I guess I did?¡± My voice came out apathetic at best, and dead inside at worst.


    Aizen¡¯s frown grew. ¡°Did you really?¡±


    I nodded somewhat slowly, the last thing I wanted was the lovely city of smithing blowing up to smithereens.


    Aizen said nothing as she removed her hand, her face no longer carried anger but she looked a bit more pensive, yet her frown remained, until finally, it all faded with a sigh. She sat at the edge of the bed and looked at the ceiling, her hands fidgeted with the bed-sheets briefly before letting go.


    ¡°Kuro, what¡¯s¡­ with you?¡±


    I sighed. What was with me? I was tired. I was¡­ I¡­ I looked at Aizen, she was awaiting my response though she didn¡¯t look at me. She was prepared for anything, at least I could tell that much.


    Aizen was¡­ the closest thing I had to Eli in this world¡­ After a brief pause I spoke.


    ¡°I am tired of this¡­¡± I made a weak gesture with my hands trying to encompass the room. Or rather everything.


    ¡°You mean¡­ adventuring? Smithing?¡± I shook my head. Aizen¡¯s brow furrowed more. ¡°Then, what could possibly make you tired?¡± There was a brief pause. ¡°Is it me?¡± Her voice came out soft like a whisper.


    ¡°No, it isn¡¯t¡­¡± I said with defeat. I knew how¡­ Aizen was regarding¡­ relationships¡­


    ¡°It¡¯s different, Aizen, it¡¯s¡­¡± I felt the words catch in my throat. ¡°It¡¯s about Eli.¡±


    ¡°Your¡­ old companion¡­ huh¡­¡± Aizen said with closed eyes, though her expression didn¡¯t change much. Why? I clenched my fists involuntarily seeing her reaction.


    ¡°I miss her¡­¡± I looked down at my fists and clenched harder. ¡°She is the only one that understood me, she is the only one that?¡ª¡± my throat closed and tears resurfaced.


    Just why¡­ Why did it have to go that way¡­ So?¡ª


    A hand on my cheek interrupted my thoughts, it was Aizen¡¯s. Her hand was trembling slightly as she looked at me with a weak smile, though her eyes were a bit dim.


    ¡°Don¡¯t say?¡ª No¡­ You¡¯ve been lonely, right?¡± She said as she closed her eyes. ¡°I am sure you miss your fellow players as a whole. It just makes sense¡­¡±


    She sounded¡­ defeated. But, it wasn¡¯t about players or anything of the sort. I grabbed Aizen¡¯s hand, stopping her from removing it. Her eyes opened with confusion, but I looked at her.


    ¡°Aizen, it isn¡¯t about you being data, everything here is real. You¡¯re real and so am I¡­ That¡¯s in the past¡­¡± I sighed. ¡°It¡¯s not about players either. It truly is about Eli, perhaps you only saw glimpses of it. But¡­¡±


    Tears slowly trickled down my face as I pondered my words.


    ¡°She was my everything back then. And I¡¯ve felt lonely since then. I still do¡­¡±


    I turned away from her. I was afraid of seeing her expression, or simply¡­ Looking at her.


    ¡°But¡­ Ari is here, I am here¡­¡± Aizen whispered, her voice uneven.


    ¡°You both are here¡­ for me. But she isn¡¯t¡­¡± I looked at the ceiling with a difficult expression.


    Was this feeling ever going to go away? An empty void in my heart¡­  I grabbed onto the bed sheets.


    ¡°Aizen, it¡¯s different¡­¡± I looked down at my body, my expression becoming difficult. ¡°It¡¯s not about you being present, or Ari being present. It¡¯s about me¡­¡± My voice grew faint. ¡°Aizen, did you know? I died before coming here? Before meeting you?


    There was a brief silence. ¡°But what could possibly kill you just like that¡­¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the thing¡­¡± How do I tell her? ¡°Eli knew I was going to die¡­ Yet here we are¡­ In a new world, I died, and she died. Yet she isn¡¯t here¡­¡±


    ¡°Kuro I am not¡­ following¡­¡±


    ¡°Aizen.¡± I looked at her with a wry smile. To my surprise she was quietly weeping. ¡°Did you know¡­ I am not as grand as I appear, or appeared even.¡± I should¡¯ve stopped right there, but I didn¡¯t.


    ¡°Kuro, I?¡ª


    ¡°Aizen, it¡¯s not¡­ I was a nobody, I was born unable to move certain parts of my body. I was born with some incurable disease. In the end, I was fated to die the day I was born. My parents did not love me even though they never put me down like an animal either¡­ All I had was the world of Zeileheim and Eli.¡±


    I was looking into space as I recalled.


    ¡°I was with her for years. We both complained to each other, talked, and reassured each other. Yet one day I simply stopped seeing her. Perhaps she died, but I have truly missed her since then. Now you know¡­¡± I sighed. ¡°How pathetic I am¡­¡±


    There was some silence. I found it a bit funny, but liberating. I had finally said it, at last¡­ Even though there was silence, and it was unexpected. I was finally free¡­


    ¡°I know, truly disappoint?¡ª


    ¡°If it bothered you so much, why did you never tell me?¡± Aizen¡¯s voice sounded chilly. I turned to look at her with surprise, she met my gaze with anger and tears, though not directed at me. ¡°Do you not get it?¡±


    ¡°Get what? Is it you who doesn¡¯t get it?¡± I frowned, it was disappointing, what else was there?!


    ¡°No?¡ª you¡¯re the one who doesn¡¯t get it.¡± Her tone remained accusatory. ¡°Do you not understand who I am?¡±


    Huh? ¡°Aizen The Legendary Dragon? ?¡ª Slap!


    "No you fucking idiot.¡± My cheek burned as I looked at her in shock. ¡°I am your family now¡­ Or¡­¡± her shoulders slumped. ¡°Perhaps¡­ it¡¯s not the same for you. But for me, you¡¯re my everything! You¡¯re all I have!¡± She sniffled. ¡°You''re the only person in this accursed world that saw how I was before!¡±


    ¡°I?¡ª


    ¡°It is you who doesn¡¯t get it, Kuro. How do you think I feel watching my only family cry¡­ Moreover, knowing you hid it from me simply because you thought I would judge you? It hurts¡­¡± Her voice came out shrill.


    "It hurts more than you can ever imagine¡­" she muttered.


    My heartbeat increased, Aizen looked destroyed, ruined, just like back then. My chest tightened.


    ¡°Forget it¡­¡± She shook her head. ¡°Knowing how stupid you¡¯re you probably didn¡¯t even intend to make me feel bad. I can see the regret in your face already.¡± She removed the tears with her sleeve as she forced a smile.


    ¡°B-But.¡± I stuttered. ¡°But I?¡ª


    Aizen grabbed my hand and janked it. ¡°Shut up, K-Yami, I¡¯ll make sure you understand that you can trust me with anything once in for all.¡± She made me get out of bed as she tugged me towards the door.


    ¡°Aizen? I get it¡ª


    ¡°No you don¡¯t, and you¡¯re still sad aren¡¯t you?¡± She looked at me from the corner of her eye, and then, she smirked, though I could feel a hint of sadness. ¡°I am your sister after-all, it is my job to cheer you up~ Just you, and me. Can''t have you say all those horrid things to Ari.¡±


    I paused. ¡°I would never say that to Ari!¡±


    ¡°Hmm?¡± She turned to look at me. ¡°It hardly matters. You¡¯re coming with me. I understand that you miss Eli.¡± She approached me and leaned into my ear. ¡°I missed you for the longest times too, so I understand. Come with me and let us have fun, okay?¡±


    Her soft voice made my heart calm, and I found myself slightly smiling. As she began to pull me again.


    ¡°I am sorry for everything Aizen¡­ It is unbecoming of an older sister.¡±


    I managed to see her smile from the side, I found myself smiling without realizing it. I looked forward to whatever Aizen?¡ª No, my little sister had prepared for me. It was going to be undoubtedly fun.


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    At first I was uncertain about the whole thing, even though I felt much more relaxed. I still felt uneasy, but Aizen dragged me through the rock filled streets as if nothing had ever happened an hour prior. It made me feel a bit better.


    Calling her my little sister in spite of her being much older than me is¡­ weird to say the least. It will take some, getting used to.


    ¡°K-Yami?¡± Aizen stuttered my name looking at me. Ah, I did stop walking briefly, right?


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s nothing. Just¡­¡± I paused, it wasn''t the time to bring up things from before... ¡°Aren¡¯t you much older than me?¡±


    Hearing my concerns, Aizen widely smiled.


    ¡°Hmm, I do not know what I am talking about. I am just a little girl!¡± She said in a dumb voice. ¡°Well, no matter, isn''t all of this great? Practically your dream!¡±


    Aizen gestured around, we were standing now in the plaza of the city. People walked about and some talked between each other, though most of the people were dwarves. I didn¡¯t really even get too many glances at my tail or ears. It was mostly church indoctrination anyway.


    The sunrays penetrated every crevice of the town, in the middle of the plaza stood a towering figure made out of the most dazzling metals available in this world. His figure towering over anything and everyone, in a valiant pose, clad in a cape and a nondescript face, the only identification was the hammer he carried on his hand.


    Looking up, I could see the dome-like structure that surrounded the city, as well as smoke constantly rising from different districts around, I could hear steam, the compression and decompression of valves as well as distant hammering sounds from squares away.


    At the edges of the city were walls of red rock; the entire place was seemingly encroached by it actually. The color of the rock, similar to the one found in canyons.


    The Underground City of Palas ?¡ª The Capital of Metallurgy.


    ¡°Like a dream¡­¡± I sighed. I suppose it isn''t the time to be worrying about my morning drama.


    ¡°Kuro you have to admit, even though we¡¯ve been here for some time, it never stops being impressive.¡± Aizen completely forgot to change my name, but she was right.


    Even though it made me slightly uncomfortable to see a statue of my old self, or as close as they could get. It was surprising that there would be such a grand statue of me. I never really considered myself important after all. So such a sight was. Breathtaking.


    Though¡­ A bit cringe. Nono?¡ª Very cringe. I scrunched my face just thinking about it.


    Aizen looked pensive as she looked at me.


    ¡°Well, I suppose it¡¯s very uncomfortable for you. I mean, imagine if their renowned god was now some smith called Dark shadow.¡± Ugh.


    ¡°And whose fault is that?¡± Aizen pondered for a second.


    ¡°Yours? Not my name.¡± She grinned. Weren''t you crying an hour ago?! Have some reserve!


    Though she was right on the name part. What did I do to deserve this!? It was just supposed to sound cool!


    Dark shadow¡­ Not to be translated¡­ Ahahaha! Though¡­ Kuro, Black. Yep! It¡¯s already bad enough!


    ¡°I thought we were going to have fun, not¡­ tease me about it¡­¡±


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s some type of fun.¡± Aizen smiled at me.


    Well she was certainly right on that at least. Though, not like I agreed to her methods. Seeing Aizen have fun herself was nice after all, and it also made me happy as well. It was nice to forget things. I suppose I needed a change of pace.


    ¡°Hmm, though I suppose one-sided fun isn¡¯t your thing¡­¡± Aizen muttered.


    ¡°It isn¡¯t, but spending time with you can be my thing.¡± I tried teasing Aizen about it, but she just flushed instead. Strange dragon.


    ¡°Y-Yeah!¡± She stuttered. ¡°T-Then, want to watch me bully some dwarves. Heard they are hoarding some eternal mithril on the council!¡± Eternal mithril?!


    I paused. I hadn¡¯t seen that metal since coming here. How would it interact with the cursed mithril? Oh wait¡­ Didn¡¯t it already interact with Aizen¡¯s gauntlet? Still, I¡¯d like to see an ingot of it again, or rather a chunk of it...


    ¡°To the council!¡± I pointed in a random direction.


    ¡°Ah! That¡¯s not the direction, but I am sure it hardly matters. Can you smell it? The metal?¡± Aizen asked with a weird tone, though she was mostly just teasing me.


    ¡°Hmph! I am not a dog, and I am not Fenri either. Can¡¯t you smell it, oh-mighty-supreme-being?¡± Aizen¡¯s face contorted as I said that. ¡°How did it go? Bow before me and I¡¯ll spare you!¡±


    ¡°Ahaaa, stop! I¡¯ll stop teasing!¡± Aizen hurriedly waved her hands in front of me. ¡°That past is long gone! Now I am just your little sister!¡±


    I nodded at her, my lips curling up. She sure is a handful. Though, a good type of handful. Aizen pulled me by my hand after making a cute snort. Ah, adorable.


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    We stood in front of the arguably most decorated building in the city, it was in the widest street that led to the Kuro Statue, my statue.


    The building itself was full of columns for structural support, inside and outside, chiseled with different patterns that were cryptic, though they were like hieroglyphics. It had no glass windows, just openings for light to come in, its structure was made of reddish stone the same as the ground, and the same as the distant walls.


    Though, the fact that it was three-stories tall was impressive. To me at least. From what I could tell it was closer to a building that was chiseled out of a single stone rather than something built.


    There were guards standing in front of the building¡¯s gate, two dwarves clad in black armor, only a cross-like opening to be seen in their helmets, their long ruffled bears flowed down to their chest.


    Now thinking about it. I took a quick glance around at the buildings. Almost every building is made out of some type of rock, and the oldest ones share the same rock as the ground itself.


    Aizen looked at the place with a bit of doubt as we stood somewhat far away from the gate.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I expected something more grand.¡±


    ¡°Grand? It is grand kiddo.¡± One of the dwarves scoffed in a powerful voice. ¡°It¡¯s as old as Palas¡¯ history. Though not like a kid would understand,¡± he sighed.


    I am surprised he could even hear from so far away. Aizen simply frowned before turning to look at me.


    ¡°Alright, let me borrow your Dark Shadow identity tag. You only have it because of me anyway.¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡± I looked at her puzzled, but she just gestured with her hand. After a short deliberation I handed it to her, I wasn¡¯t particularly fond of it even though it was somewhat convenient.


    Aizen took the tag with a smile and went to the same guard that spoke as she stood in front of him, albeit she was now smiling.


    ¡°Hello, Grand Guard of The Council, my partner ?¡ª Dark Shadow, requests a meeting. She is one of the most outstanding smiths in the continent.¡± She said as she handed him the tag.


    The guard took it and after a brief inspection he went stiff. ¡°I-I am sorry for offending you Miss, I did not know you were partners with someone so grand! I will get it sorted straight away!¡± He hurriedly left his post. ¡°A descendant of our god himself?!¡± He muttered to himself as he went inside the building.


    Sometimes¡­ I wish I didn¡¯t have enhanced hearing¡­ I sighed. I didn¡¯t choose to be god. Or be called one rather¡­ I turned to look at Aizen with a slight frown as she walked back to me.


    ¡°What¡¯s with that look, how are you going to see the eternal mithril? Thankfully your renown as a blacksmith is high enough due to your stupidity or we would be struggling to get a meeting."


    Aizen said with a righteous tone, though it bothered me, she was mostly right.


    ¡°Right¡­ I might¡¯ve gone overboard a few times.¡±


    This time, Aizen frowned. ¡°A few times? Let me remind you, when we first got here, the first thing you did was show your level at the Adventurer¡¯s guild then go straight to the Craftsmen guild. Made an iron dagger that left the dwarven Guildmaster flabbergasted. But, you¡­ you didn¡¯t stop there.¡±


    She pointed her finger at me. ¡°Then we went to the capital and made yet another dagger for the Guildmaster there, even though I got you a token for the smithy you just went ahead and did that. And then, you went to another town without me?¡ª and burnt it to the ground!¡±


    She pressed her finger on my chest.


    ¡°And I could go on¡­¡± I gulped. I did burn a town down, didn¡¯t I?


    I waved my hand dismissively. ¡°Alright, alright I get it. I wasn¡¯t planning on using the mithril anyway, kind of tired of this whole ordeal anyway.¡±


    Aizen paused as her finger dropped, until she finally sighed. ¡°Kuro, I understand that this life is perhaps something that you didn¡¯t want or rather, something that probably neither of us wanted at the time.¡± Eh? ¡°But, seeing you not be as enthusiastic about smithing anymore is a bit¡­ sad.¡±


    I paused. It was like that, wasn¡¯t it? When did it happen? I had no answer.


    I sighed. ¡°Perhaps you¡¯re right, but you could say I am retired anyway. It¡¯s like you, you went and razed towns and once you reached the peak you mellowed out, no? Well sort of¡­¡±


    ¡°Right¡­ Sort of¡­ I guess it¡¯s the same for you¡­¡±


    I slowly nodded with slight defeat. I did enjoy it as a recreational activity, but it was no longer my drive, or anything to live for. Yes I did like it, in fact I loved it. But, it was just that, it wasn¡¯t my reason for living, it wasn¡¯t my everything, it wasn¡¯t my world. At least not anymore. And in fact, it was never something like that.


    Even at the beginning, I did not rush with all my strength to get anything done like a wild animal, that wasn¡¯t me anymore. I was now Yami, not Kuro the player. Though, Aizen calling me Kuro? That was different.


    As I pondered the dwarven guard came out of the building and briskly made his way towards us.


    ¡°Palas¡¯ Council of Metallurgy has agreed to a meeting.¡±


    I was confused hearing his extremely respectful tone. Just like that? Shouldn¡¯t they have asked about why we wanted a meeting or something.  The dwarf walked up to me, his face at the same height as mine.


    ¡°Please.¡± He bowed and presented the tag like a business card.


    ¡°T-Thanks.¡± I quickly took my tag back. What etiquette was necessary for this? I simply did a stoic nod at him when he raised his head, for some reason this made him smile slightly.


    ¡°Please do follow me, both of you.¡± He gave a nod of acknowledgement to me and one to Aizen.


    Aizen simply smiled, but I was still confused. It¡¯s just way too straight-forward, no? In the end, I couldn¡¯t even say much as he guided us into the building. Though, judging by the excited expression on the Guard¡¯s face I had a bad feeling.


    ¡°You left Ari with Fenri, right?¡± I asked Aizen in a whisper.


    ¡°Yeah, moreover Dan actually had to come to the city. Since he owes me so many times for saving his life, it wasn¡¯t an issue to convince him to accompany Ari.¡±


    ¡°Ah.¡± Realization struck hearing Dan and the many lives he owes. I am sorry Dan, I¡¯ll make sure to apologize for my little sister¡¯s abuse when I have the chance. I made a silent prayer to Dan and the atrocities he had to suffer from.


    A young maiden such as him shouldn¡¯t be abused by a tyrannical dragon after all. Especially if said dragon was supposed to be my little sister. I sighed.


    As we passed by the entrance, I noticed it was a reception. There were benches made out of quartz to the sides, the marbled floor sparkled in a myriad of colors from the light stones in the ceiling, and behind the marble desk stood a¡­ an elven receptionist.


    My face turned to one of displeasure simply looking at such a foul creature. Some may call it racism, and it was correct. But it was from experience. Aizen¡¯s face didn¡¯t change too much but I could tell she wasn¡¯t exactly happy.


    I mean, how could we even be happy? Every single elf we had met was an extremist in some way. First was the elf that tried to see our statuses by acting on his own. Thankfully Aizen erased his memories. Then there was the elf teacher that took pleasure in torturing kids, that Aizen still regrets not killing and then¡­


    My face became ugly. That piece of shit elf that tried taking away my legendary armor. Though elves were rare, our encounters with them were anything but pleasant. Being prejudiced was¡­ to be expected. At least to some extent.


    Though, the receptionist hadn¡¯t done anything to us, yet¡­


    ¡°Is something wrong?¡±


    The elf turned to look at us in confusion, her attire was similar to a tuxedo but with a vest, her long green hair flowed behind her tied in a ponytail, and her squared glasses fit her perfectly. Her ears were twitching a bit.


    ¡°N-nothing.¡± I stuttered, unable to accuse her of anything just yet.


    The guard gave us a weird look but continued escorting us further into the building. Surprisingly aside from a few dwarven guards the place was relatively deserted. We saw a few other workers, but that was about it.


    In the end, it was eventful, though the insides of the building were rather nice, full of precious metals such as gold or mithril, and there was even some type of abstract sculpture that had a piece of eternal mithril in the middle. Untreated of course.


    In the end, we stood at the stairs of the third floor, where a pair of doors that towered over everyone was placed. It was made of black metal with patterns just like the ones in the columns.


    ¡°I may not accompany the both of you further than this.¡± The guard nodded at us and left.


    Aizen and I said nothing as he made his way down the stairs, and then we looked at each other.


    ¡°Now what?¡± I asked. Aizen simply smiled.


    ¡°Well just watch, ah, don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t let them hound you about your identity.¡± She dismissed in a carefree tone, though her smile seemed to grow by the second.


    Just what could she be thinking? I had a bad feeling about this. That smile. Oh no. It¡¯s that smile¡­


    Before I could say anything to stop her, she went to the doors and pushed them open with strength unbefitting of the little girl she claimed to be. Past the doors was a half-circle table that covered most of the room.


    There were seats arranged in a half moon to look at the entrance, even though a lot of the spots were empty I still paused. Out of the twenty chairs, half were taken. Some of the seated were burly humans with massive beards, others were dwarves with massive beards, some beastkin with massive beards, and an elf with a massive ashen beard, seated at the center..


    I gulped as all of their eyes unanimously landed on me.


    ¡°Eh, there aren''t as many dwarves as I expected¡­¡± Aizen said wide-eyed.


    Her voice clearly reached every single person in the room, for all the attention instantly gathered on her. Though, knowing her it didn¡¯t bother her in the slightest. Haha, if only I could be that confident.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s boring. Let us go K-Yami.¡± Aizen said as she grabbed my hand and turned around.


    ¡°Eh?¡± That was all?! Aaa?! I shivered a bit feeling all the gazes turn cold on me.


    ¡°Wait a second!¡± The elf said, his voice filling the entire room in an instant. ¡°To what do we owe this offense?¡± He was frowning. The bearded elf was frowning! Nonono, not an elf!


    I felt a headache starting as Aizen turned to look at the elf, he was still slightly frowning, his wrinkled face slightly scrunching.


    ¡°Hmm? It¡¯s not an offense, I was just planning on challenging everyone to a game of wits. Dwarves are fond of such things, but humans and¡­ elves, not so much.¡± Aizen dismissed as she continued towards the door.


    The elderly elf pondered for a second, his face easing a bit as he opened his mouth.


    ¡°A game of wits, sounds interesting.¡± The elf said as he ruffled his beard, no hostility in his tone. ¡°Though, I do think not having stakes is very boring, don¡¯t you think so?¡± He smirked. I paused looking at his smirk, it reminds me of¡­


    Aizen stopped walking and a smile bloomed on her face. I don''t like this...


    ¡°Ooh! Interesting! How about this, I decide the game and you decide the stakes, old man.¡±  Aizen said, her eyes narrowing.


    ¡°Hm? Sounds good, though¡­¡± He paused, combing his beard with his fingers. ¡°What is it that you wish to obtain out of this? We do want to have an interview with Miss Dark Shadow, so that will be our wager.¡±


    ¡°But Palk?¡ª


    ¡°Sounds great!¡± One of the dwarves seated agreed, Soon, everyone but two people agreed, alas, they couldn¡¯t really say no now. I couldn''t say no either...


    Aizen smiled. ¡°Very well, though I do only want to play one person now. Hmm, the game will be chess, ever heard of it?¡± Chess, how does a dragon know chess?! Aizen turned to look at me with a mischievous smile, and she seemed pleased seeing my surprised face. Though I was panicking.


    It all sounded like a recipe for disaster.


    ¡°Ah, as a reward I want a bit of eternal mithril if possible.¡± Aizen added a bit nonchalantly. The elf listened for a second and pondered before nodding. He was surprisingly calm with the entire ordeal.


    ¡°Very well, I shall play Chess with you?¡ª Pardon, but what is your name miss?¡± He asked my dragon companion, his voice was very polite ?¡ª too polite for an elf.


    ¡°Aizen, K-Yami¡¯s sister of course.¡± She nodded with pride, eliciting a nod of acknowledgement from the room.


    ¡°Very well, Aizen. I, Palka shall play you in a game of chess, a game with thousands of years of history that first surfaced from a powerful hero. Though, I must admit, I didn¡¯t expect a young girl such as yourself to know about chess.¡± Aah, otherworlders¡­ of course chess would be a thing. It still didn¡¯t explain how Aizen knew chess, but¡­


    No point in asking.


    Aizen nodded, and turned to look at me. She smiled innocently and pinched my cheek, I squirmed slightly. What is her problem?!


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Yami, I am a total pro at chess. For I have this.¡± She pulled out a book from the void.


    ?A practical guide to Chess & the effects of Chess 2 on the brain; Anarchy Variant.? A-Anarchy Chess?! ?Written by Garry Chess Kaspy? Nono?¡ª nonono. I had heard of it before. It was something written by a player¡­ Nooooo! How did she even get her hands on it? Ah, I had failed as a sister. Unable to keep something so demonic from her claws¡­


    I looked at Aizen, her bright smile blinded me for a second, but at that moment. A bit of my sense of self died inside. How could I fail her so badly?


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    I scrunched my brows reading the Chess manual, it was simply a cursed object. Not literally but it was damn close. What kind of shit is this?! I felt compelled to throw it in the ground based on the amount of nonsense written on it.


    And Aizen looked so proud to have me read it. I sighed. En-passant is always forced. Since when?! Actually can you even decline it?! Moreover¡­ Brick¡­ pipi¡­ Brick on pipi if declined? What kind of bullshit is this?! What kind of mentally challenged person wrote this?


    The entire manual was filled with en-passant things, some things that read like copy-pasta and a lot of. ¡®Google en-passant¡¯. Worth mentioning that in fact?¡ª there was no such thing as Google here.


    The parts mentioning Chess 2 weren¡¯t any better¡­ Though¡­ There was a conversation written between the author and a supposed king. And I would¡¯ve been lying if it didn¡¯t make me chuckle a bit.


    I stood in front of him, gazing at him deeply, the king in his reverie was unable to wake from his stupor. I understood at that moment, the concept was too dazzling for his insignificant brain to comprehend.


    ¡°En-passant is forced,¡± I repeated myself.


    ¡°W-What does that have to do with anything?!¡± He stuttered in surprise. ¡°You literally stole half of our country¡¯s wealth! And you¡¯re getting arrested!¡± I smirked, knowing how mindblowing en-passant was to such a simple-minded man.


    Surely he wouldn¡¯t see the brick coming next. And then The London, and finally The Bong Cloud. It was simply put: Infallible!


    I had no clue what ¡®The London¡¯ or ¡®The Bong Cloud¡¯ was, but I could feel the insurmountable intellect from the author. It truly was a masterpiece. A comedic masterpiece that is. Even though I appreciated the penmanship and art that was the literature in the book. I couldn¡¯t help but worry.


    The entire thing was a guide to being ridiculous and obnoxious for lack of a better word. Though it fits Aizen¡­ I closed my eyes remembering her grin. In spite of everything though, I still felt worried. It was simply put ?¡ª a recipe for trouble. Though not like trouble was uncommon.


    I chuckled nervously to myself as I saw the table being set up. Everyone had a seat to the side, and it was a stand-off between the elf and Aizen. The elf had said his name, but I had forgotten it. The chess set looked hand made, some of the pieces were uneven but they reflected the light in such a particular manner. Hmhm, made out of metal, wow.


    The set was mostly made out of mithril, and dyed mithril. The set itself was very expensive. I mean I certainly wouldn¡¯t have wasted so much mithril in a chess set. Well maybe¡­ It did look nice. A bit too nice. Even though it was obviously old simply from the scratches and ¡®weathering¡¯ on the metal, it was still dazzling.


    The elf looked at me. ¡°It seems you hold  an interest in my chess set, I thought you were simply a smith Dark Shadow.¡±


    I spared a glance at him before nodding. ¡°Using mithril in daily life items is something new to me.¡± I mean, all I¡¯ve done since I can remember is weaponry, and armors, oh and accessories sometimes¡­


    I did a second nod remembering my exploits, from daggers, to daggers, to¡­ Huh¡­


    Before I could continue my conversation with the elf there was a table set in the spare space of the room as well as chairs. Everyone gathered in a circle as I stood behind Aizen. It was just chess¡­ Everyone¡¯s eyes were paying attention to Aizen like predators. Sigh.


    As the pieces were set and Aizen adjusted herself, the elf caressed his beard one final time, before his eyes turned serious. He started to emit a passive aura of dominance and tyranny! Or well, I just thought so anyway. Aizen also turned serious, and soon the game started.


    The elf thought it was a good idea to give Aizen the first move, for she was playing the white pieces. I did remember white having a slight advantage, though¡­ Not like it matters, considering the book she used to learn¡­ I sighed, looking at my dumb sister with a difficult face. Does she seriously think that that guide will help her?


    Aizen grabbed the pawn in front of the king and moved it two squares forward. White pawn to e4¡­ Oh. It¡¯s a completely normal opening move. Perhaps, the guide wasn¡¯t just useless jokes? Then the elf made his move. Black pawn to e5. Again, I thought it was normal. Though, I would¡¯ve been lying if I knew anything about chess.


    Then she moved forward the knight, or horsey. So did the elf. The moves continued almost mirroring themselves for a bit, until it was akin to a deadly trap. A single move would enact an endless trade of pawns, bishops, knights and even queens! Maybe she knows how to play chess? I looked at Aizen somewhat dubiously.


    None of the questionable strategies in the book had been used yet. I mean. The Bong Cloud literally involved lighting up weed on fire into the face of the opponent¡­ I didn¡¯t realize it at first, but the book was dead serious, or as serious as it could be. It read more like a religion than an actual manual being honest.


    Was there even weed in this world? I mean, I was sure there were replacements. But like, the book literally lists weed as well as its possible other names. No alternatives listed.


    The game continued as the tension raised. Some pawns remained unmoved, a flurry of trading pieces and cheeky forks happened every so often. As the board emptied, the elf moved one of his pawns. Black pawn to g5 ending up next to a pawn in the ¡®h¡¯ file. Aizen smirked, her eyes shined in a dangerous light and?¡ª


    The white pawn on h5, crossed the black pawn on g5 landing right behind him. As if a puppet that had its strings cut, it died. And then, there was silence. For the first time since the game started, they stopped moving pieces.


    ¡°En-passant.¡± Aizen said in a resolute voice. Oh no. I paused seeing Aizen¡¯s hidden hand enter her secondary dimension. Sheltered underneath the shadow of the desk almost no one noticed her scheme.


    The elf thought for a second. ¡°En-passant? That¡¯s ridiculous, pawns can only take in diagonals, just like bishops!¡± He said righteously.


    Aizen furrowed her brows. ¡°So you¡¯re declining en-passant? Google en-passant¡­¡±


    ¡°Holy hell¡­¡± I muttered under my breath. The elf paused, unaware of my unintended mutter. He looked at Aizen with confusion for a second before finally scoffing.


    ¡°Google? What¡¯s that?! Never heard of a ¡®google¡¯ in my life!¡± he snorted. ¡°I decline of course!¡± He slammed the table.


    As if the slam was an alarm, Aizen used her left hand to swat the table away, the metal pieces flew like cheap plastic, the table bending under her strength. Her other arm was raised up high, casting a shadow over the elf¡¯s face, a red brick loomed over him like a deadly weight. In an instant, it was slammed down on his crotch.


    ¡°AAAAAAAAAAAAA?¡ª¡± An ear piercing scream filled the room.


    The brick shattered in a cloud of red dust along with the man¡¯s pipi. Needless to say, I was fucking horrified.


    ¡°I-I thought, it was just like a light tap, not?¡ª not extinguish his bloodline!¡± I stuttered at Aizen.


    ¡°Hmm? It¡¯s totally normal, actually we have an unfair advantage. We can decline en-passant without worrying about the brick.¡± Aizen nodded to herself, before looking at the crying elf. ¡°It¡¯s his fault for having a genetically predisposed weakness.¡± Aaaa¡­ What the fuck?!


    Everyone was too horrified to say anything. Soon, receptionists came in a hurry with potions in hand, forcefully feeding them to the elf. Before anyone could say or do anything at us, Aizen walked up to the elf, looking down at his pathetic self collapsed on the ground.


    ¡°Should¡¯ve read the rules.¡± She tossed the book. ?A practical guide to Chess & the effects of Chess 2 on the brain; Anarchy Variant.? It landed dully on the ground. The elf was surprised but slowly managed to pick it up without saying anything.


    To be honest, I couldn¡¯t tell if he was in too much shock, too scared, or both. Since he said nothing and began reading the book. To my surprise, he seemed to read faster and faster till he stopped.


    ¡°It seems¡­ I was ignorant¡­¡± He muttered in a weak voice. ¡°A book by the founder of chess¡­ I understand now¡­¡± He nodded slowly through the pain. ¡°While I still don¡¯t understand what a ¡®google¡¯ is, it does appear to be forced¡­¡±


    Eh?! Should he just accept having his crotch murdered just like that?! I paused in horror as he made eye contact with Aizen.


    ¡°It is my loss.¡± He nodded at her.


    Aizen smirked and simply nodded in acknowledgement. ¡°I hope you people can learn the true version of chess from now on.¡± True version¡­


    The elf suddenly turned stern, or as much as he could in his pain. ¡°I will make sure we¡­ carry his legacy¡­ ugh¡­¡± He groaned as he held his crotch in pain.


    I was hopeful that potions could fix it. I honestly felt slightly bad. I mean, he was the only elf that did not seem to go overboard with us. I sighed in defeat.


    ¡°Well, let us go, Kuro.¡± Aizen said as she grabbed my hand. No one really paid attention to us as we quietly left, though I was¡­ relatively disappointed in the atrocity that Aizen had committed.


    I guess I had to teach her what was right or wrong as well¡­


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    As we exited the building I noticed the city was bustling with activity. While it wasn¡¯t quite saturated yet, there were carts with different minerals moving on and about. Some people wore much more ornamented clothes and others were with their families. It was a mix of races from humans, to beastkin as well as dwarves. Though humans were the most uncommon, dwarves simply dominated everywhere.


    Though there was no such thing as discrimation, it was slightly refreshing. It would¡¯ve been refreshing had Aizen not played chess.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t need to destroy his thing like that you-know?¡± I told Aizen in a weird tone.


    ¡°Why do you keep mentioning it?!¡± Aizen said, slightly exasperated.


    ¡°Because, I was a man once upon a time you know!¡± I raised my voice a bit before pausing. Some people looked at me weird. Ugh! What¡¯s with those looks of disgust?!


    ¡°Either way, it¡¯s just the rules by the inventor of chess!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not how it works! First of all, chess wasn¡¯t invented by that guy, and second! You probably didn¡¯t need to try to kill him from pure shock and pain!¡± I grumbled, feeling highly displeased in how the dragon sister of mine treated people.


    Aizen sighed. ¡°Look, that guide was honestly pure gibberish, but it¡¯s too funny to not use.¡± It was funny till, she fucking bricked the elf!


    ¡°But¡­ Sigh forget it. Though that was the first elf that wasn¡¯t too bad.¡± I said with a hint of sadness.


    ¡°That is true¡­ perhaps I shouldn¡¯t have been so vicious with the brick.¡± Aizen sighed as well. ¡°I mean, I didn¡¯t need to brainwash this elf like the first one we encountered. At the same time, this one didn¡¯t try to kill me, and neither did he try to sabotage you by taking away your belongings¡­¡±


    I nodded.


    ¡°Well, small matter¡­ Perhaps I am just not meant to be a professional chess player. If those are a thing. My skill with the brick is just too terrifying...¡± She muttered with uncertainty. Ahaha¡­ the guide had given her false ideologies!


    I felt my head throb. Why must I deal with this? Before I could say any more, Aizen tapped my back.


    ¡°Well, shall we check out the festival?¡± I was met with a smile and somewhat excited eyes.


    ¡°Festival?¡± She did mention a festival at the start of the day, but what type?


    ¡°Ah, I forgot. It¡¯s your festival Kuro!¡± My festival? ¡°Today is the day they celebrate The Master Craftsman, like a holiday. Though I think it''s the coming of The Master Craftsman?¡± She tilted her head in doubt.


    The coming? Like¡­ Jesus or something? I couldn¡¯t ask more as Aizen led me to the plaza with the statue. Though, the growing tides of people made it somewhat hard to see what was happening.


    The usual food stalls were flourishing along the edges of the plaza as well as other small businesses. From people selling yarn, to other types of handicrafts such as small blacksmithing hammers, or anvils. There were other much more normal toys such as little carts.


    Aizen led me to stop in front of a stall that sold meat skewers, its aroma instantly catching my attention, it was almost sweet and full of flavor, a whiff of its scent had made my mouth water. We stood in front of the stall, a friendly man in his twenties manning it. From cooking, to cutting to skewing.


    He was rather unremarkable with black hair and eyes. Though it was very cool. His only distinguishing feature was the fact that he was wearing some sort of hair net to pull his hair back. Though it was more like a cover.


    ¡°Oh, if it isn¡¯t one of my regulars. Let¡¯s see, two skewers for you and your¡­ older sister?¡± The man guessed my identity somewhat cheerfully. Aizen nodded with a smile, pleased at the man¡¯s inquiry. She put her hand inside her pocket but the man raised his arm to stop her.


    ¡°Today is a special day, free of charge for you.¡± He winked with a smile, and gave Aizen the two skewers.


    Aizen nodded in gratitude before we started walking away.


    I hurriedly received one skewer from her and I got a taste of it. It had onion as well as other vegetables that I didn¡¯t distinguish, but the flavor was a mix of sweetness and saltiness, its juice seeping into my mouth full of distinct tastes. It was simply, amazingly good.


    ¡°Glad you like it.¡± The man commented from a distance, making me pause a bit. I was totally devouring the thing!


    Aizen smiled at me somewhat mischievously as she began eating too. Though she tried not to show it, I could see the delight on her face as she slowly munched on it. We cheerfully scoured the area but quickly realized there was no real quiet place. I mean, who would want to stand amongst the crowd? Aizen was frowning, seemingly thinking the same thing.


    ¡°Hmm, now that I think about it. I heard this festival will have some things called ¡®fireworks¡¯ and they will be doing other interesting things too.¡± Aizen offhandedly mentioned. ¡°So, we should go to a better place to watch from. High up in the sky.¡± In the sky? I looked up at the gaping hole of the city, the sky was a deep orange, the day was about to end.


    ¡°If you say so¡­¡± I muttered with slight insecurity. Aizen nodded and ripped all of the meat from the wooden stick before burning it down on her hand.


    I finished the stick, but didn¡¯t know what to do with it.


    ¡°Ah you¡¯re as silly as always¡­¡± she muttered in a somewhat happy tone as she took it from me and also burnt it to cinders. ¡°Well, let us go.¡± She took my hand, leading me outside the town.


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    She held me by the hand as we left the town, the outside of the crevice completely desolate of greenery, just an endless expanse of desert and red rocks, I could see the sun settling beyond the horizon line as it distorted with slight heat.


    Aizen ignored it as we continued walking and talked about things. The road we followed slowly tilted in an upwards slope.


    We talked about how I killed a bunch of bandits and then summoned her, only for her to cry and then get all in high spirits. How she liked to wrestle with Fenri, or how the visit to the town of Mirl went. Where everything got out of hand due to my level and classes.


    ¡°Hmm, though to be honest I didn¡¯t know about it either even though I had been in this world for thirty years.¡±


    ¡°Right.¡± I nodded to Aizen. ¡°But you were mostly doing your own thing, though, right now. You¡¯re with me.¡± I smiled.


    She turned to look at me and smiled back, her pearly white teeth reflecting the settling sun.


    * * *


    The conversation between us continued, talking about how I took smithing too seriously, how it caused some troubles and how we met Dan¡­


    ¡°Though, I never expected Dan to be a guy.¡± Aizen offhandedly mentioned.


    I paused slightly. ¡°Ah, but you know. He¡¯s always struggled with that, I think anyway.¡± My companion nodded without thinking too much about it.


    ¡°Well, though, he is very dependable, even if he lacks manliness.¡± Aizen nodded to her own comment. Though it was raw, Dan was certainly dependable. Even though we initially met him as a scout for the guild during a subjugation mission.


    ¡°He is with Ari and Fenri right?¡±


    ¡°Yep, they went to the capital to fix some things. Though I kinda forced Ari to go, since you know I wanted some¡­ Alone time¡­ with you¡­¡± Her voice grew soft towards the end, as I saw her cheeks slightly flush.


    * * *


    And finally we talked about ourselves.


    ¡°I would¡¯ve never imagined I¡¯d end up considering you my closest kin. Though, it applies to Ari as well¡­¡± Aizen said, her tone coming slightly weird. ¡°Ah! It¡¯s not like I mind it though!¡±


    I chuckled. ¡°Right, I don¡¯t mind it either. I wouldn¡¯t trade the both of you for all the minerals in the world, ah, Fenri included.¡± I nodded to myself.


    ¡°Ah, you and your weird rock obsession.¡± She shook her head. ¡°At least you haven¡¯t tried to behead me with a rock any more. It hurt pretty bad when you did it last time you know?¡±


    ¡°Sorry¡­¡± I awkwardly scratched my head. ¡°To be fair, you shouldn¡¯t have kept talking to that dwarf, you got carried away.¡±


    ¡°Hmph!¡± Aizen snorted. ¡°I was only teaching him a lesson. Besides, it all worked well in the end. Talking about dwarves, didn¡¯t you snap at one of them for telling you to not plagiarize your own symbol? That was certainly a spectacle.¡±


    I paused. Why did she remind me?


    ¡°Though, I still feel bad for misleading Ari.¡± Aizen pondered for a second as we walked before nodding.


    ¡°She was too curious for her own good anyway, she had a lot of stuff going on and yet she insisted on trying to test us, though it was amusing.¡± Aizen smirked, recalling.


    Right, she did do a few things that were somewhat over the line.


    ¡°It was also fun to have her come along. I certainly would¡¯ve found it annoying to deal with the noble girl we rescued.¡± Ah, the one whose butler had the guards point at us.


    It was certainly an amusing thing looking back.


    ¡°You could say it was truly dangerous back then.¡± Aizen paused at my words and looked at me with doubt.


    ¡°Kuro, you know. Sometimes I look back at that night, the one with the assassin. And my heart grows nervous.¡± She spoke softly. ¡°Sometimes it¡¯s recalling the torture I did, but other times it¡¯s the what if scenario?¡ª


    I sensing where her sentence was going, I approached Aizen from behind and gave her a hug.


    ¡°Then let us not think about the what ifs, we are here together, no?¡± I whispered with a soft smile. Aizen returned the smile with a nod before looking ahead of our path.


    We had been walking up-hill for quite some time now, I had lost track of time talking to her for so long. While my legs wouldn¡¯t grow tired, it was certainly a lot of travel distance. The sun had long settled, and the night smiled upon us showering us with its myriad of stars in its stead.


    ¡°Oh, we are here.¡± Aizen said, bringing me back from my thoughts.


    We stood in front of some poorly carved stairs, as they seemed to lead to the top of the hill we had been walking through, though it might as well be a mountain. The sun had set when we left, yet it was almost midnight after everything was said and done¡­


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    As we climbed the slope, Aizen seemed to pause for a second.


    ¡°Ah, just in time!¡± She pulled my hand hurriedly as we walked atop the rocky hill, I could see light in the distance. My mind tried to make sense of it, and in the end my eyes went wide. Is that the¡­


    And we made it to the edge. Looking down, I could see a statue of myself, almost reaching as high as the place we stood. The different lights of the city flickered every now and then, smoke constantly rose from the different vendor stalls, and people clamored around the central plaza, though it was as if I was listening to simply muffled sounds.


    The chilly wind blew through my hair, and the earthy smell reached my ears. It was so quiet¡­


    ¡°Ah, look!¡± Aizen pointed at a corner of the plaza, there were some carts. Before I could say or ask anything, a rope was lit. ¡°The fireworks will commence shortly!¡±


    Before I realized it, Aizen had tackled me to the ground in a gentle manner and sat next to me. Just as she finished settling herself next to me, I heard a chime go off in the distant background.


    Streaks of smoke flew past our vision into the sky, and then a bit more before exploding in a booming sound. Nebulas of cosmic colors went off in my vision in a glistening fashion, their vibrant cold colors captivated me; the navy blue, the purples and the pinks. All just as dazzling.


    ¡°Oh wow, that¡¯s a lot better than I imagined.¡± Aizen muttered in surprise. Her eyes sparkled in interest.


    ¡°They are nice.¡± I muttered, adding to her thoughts.


    ¡°Indeed. And that¡¯s not all¡­¡± That¡¯s not all? As I was about to ask Aizen about what she meant, objects filled my vision, coming from the underground town. Floating lamps in various shapes and sizes filled the night-sky.


    Each of different qualities and colors though they seemed to follow and overall theme of smithing in some way, some represented minerals, others had smithing tools drawn to it.


    Though Aizen¡¯s attention was somewhere else, following her vision I saw a much bigger lamp rise slowly through the skyline. It was much bigger than Aizen and I combined. It was giant and imposing in a silver color.


    It had a metallic shine on some parts of it, the amount of metal it carried by all means impossible without magic. And it was in the form of a¡­  dragon? Well it wasn¡¯t flawless, but Aizen looked at it with nothing but joy.


    ¡°Look, Kuro, that¡¯s me! And you!¡± She pointed towards the head of the dragon, a small little stick figure sat atop of it.


    I couldn¡¯t help but be surprised. ¡°The scale is slightly wrong.¡±


    ¡°Pfff, scale! Look at how mighty I look in the sky!¡± The dragon lamp, or rather the Aizen lamp kept rising up high accompanying its kin on their journey towards the sky.


    It rose slowly as we watched, the wind blowing and the distant sounds of the festival in the background.


    As it drifted, we grew quiet. Aizen placed her hand atop of mine, it was soft and tender, it''s warmness filling my hand.


    ¡°Hey Kuro¡­ Do you still miss Eli?¡± She asked, almost in a whisper. My hand tensed for a second before it relaxed.


    Miss her? I missed her¡­ all of the time. I had already told Aizen everything she needed to know, I told her¡­ the things that mattered to me¡­ Eli¡­ I still missed her even if time passed.


    ¡°I do, but¡­¡± I looked at the sky, following the various lamps. ¡°I shouldn''t cry about it anymore¡­ I don¡¯t really have regrets about it now.¡± I truthfully answered.


    Aizen took a few seconds to think before opening her mouth.


    ¡°That¡¯s good. That makes me happy. I was still worried¡­¡± Aizen¡¯s voice continued to be soft. I looked at her and she was fidgeting and drawing circles on the ground, not really looking at me.


    ¡°Hey Kuro¡­¡±


    ¡°... Yeah?¡±


    Aizen raised her head and looked at the lamps in the sky. She paused thinking about something, and then she innocently smiled at me. A pure smile.


    ¡°What do you think of riding me one day?¡±


    ¡°Eh?! What?!¡± I panicked. What happened to her?! She was all cute a second ago!


    ¡°Pfff! Hahaha~¡± Aizen began to uncontrollably laugh as she rolled on the ground. ¡°Look at your face!¡±


    ¡°T-That¡¯s not fair!¡± I stuttered as I felt my body grow heated.


    A few seconds passed as I tried to calm my beating heart and Aizen attempted to stop laughing. Until finally, she put her head on my shoulder.


    ¡°Though, I am glad you can finally trust me¡­ Truly¡­" I froze as she muttered. "No idea what I would''ve done if things didn''t go well¡­"


    A white trail of smoke flew through the gap in front of us. Going much faster than anything before, it reached the lamps in no time before it exploded in spectacular fashion, setting a chain of sparkling reactions in its chemicals. It continued exploding in a myriad of thundering sounds, each bringing a set of orange sparks that illuminated the night.


    My eyes looked at the final firework as the lamps burned, all there was left was silence. The stars sparkled as if nothing ever happened. No fireworks, no lamps, no anything. But my mind was somewhere else.


    I looked at my hand, my eyes landing on the silver ring shaped after a coiled branch, a green gem stood intertwined between its pathing, yet it didn¡¯t sparkle or fluctuate.


    In the end. It¡¯s like this¡­ I heavily sighed as I removed the ring and placed it in front of me, facing the city. Perhaps, the old me should accompany the old you¡­


    My eyes started to tear up. I will forever miss you. Eli¡­ But¡­ I looked at Aizen, my gaze softening. I think I might¡¯ve found a new true companion¡­ Her eyes were closed, and her hair was somewhat disheveled, she must¡¯ve been tired¡­


    I didn''t intend to stress her out, or worry her for that matter...


    ¡°Kuro,¡± she muttered.


    ¡°Hm?¡± Is she talking while sleeping?


    ¡°I love you, I missed you a lot¡­ don¡¯t leave me¡­ I will always be here." All of her words came with different emotions, each slurred in between. But...


    As if something broke inside of me, I simply¡­ began crying. Tears uncontrollably flowed down my cheeks. I couldn¡¯t stop it. I had been selfish and never thought about how Aizen felt¡­ Yet she always tried so hard for me...


    I was no longer alone, or rather...


    I was never alone to begin with¡­ From the start I wasn''t alone¡­


    I was too blind to realize it until now.


    ¡°I love you too Aizen¡­ I won''t ever leave...¡± I whispered in-between my tears.


    I looked at the stars with my blurred vision as I felt my mind slowly being overtaken by the need to sleep.


    The future is bright. I smiled.


    Azrie

 (Author) 2 Years

    Azrie


    If you haven''t read: (Special) New Beginnings: A Brighter Tomorrow


    I highly suggest you do. I have to say, I couldn''t stop laughing at the chess scene while writing it and re-reading it. Though that''s because I am a degenerate.


    Alright, I know you all wanted this author note. Everyone wants it, I want it, your family wants it, even the dead want it! Truly irresistible.


    Hello everyone, it''s me your beloved author-chan! Well, just beloved author. Hehe. So, well, some of you that bother reading this might go like. Wait who is this? And stuff.


    Alright, alright. I will stop joking entirely. I am not proud of what happened, I remember I would say cheesy stuff in my  novels about never dropping them, and things that other authors would do. Only to basically hit everyone with a 2 year hiatus without even saying anything. Just straight up ghosting. Disgusting!


    Well good news is, I am continuing the story, I no longer have mental problems nor retardation, I don''t really care about what people say about it anymore which should make updates more consistent. At the same time I do feel like it was better for the story to go into a 2 year hiatus, let me explain: I was so fixated in giving Master Craftsman an overarching plot that I completely forgot what the story was about.


    This is due to stupidity as well as criticism the story received from certain people saying it''s just dumb and there is no stakes! Well there isn''t that''s the fucking point of this story. But back then I didn''t really see it that way, so it skewed me a bit.


    The story was meant to be a funny read and something to make one smile, not something else, not something more. And yet I completely forgot about this part and began writing edgy things, and it got even worse in the chapter backlog. So, it''s probably right for the novel to have paused at such a time, since I can still "fix" it, and by fixing I mean. Returning it to what it was about, sure it''s not easy to notice how it deviated, but it did.


    Example: Aizen agreeing to a dumb contract from the king, in which I cannot even remember the details of. Though, contract was never made. Well one gets the point.


    So a few changes I will be making to the novel, as well as the chapter backlog. Here are some changes moving forward.


    Chapters written after the 2 years, will receive a new title. "New Beginnings"


    Kuro (Yami), Protagonist: Will receive more braincells and less stupidity. Like, she will be less facepalm worthy, or so I hope.


    Aizen (Dragon): Still Aizen, still a lovable tsundere dragon that likes destruction.


    Ari (mystery sister): Her backstory will still be explored since it doesn''t kill the mood of the novel.


    A few changes to how money will be handled, though it''s not too relevant.


    On the topic of leaving for 2 years.


    I have to admit it felt good. It truly did, I felt... free. But it was a weird twisted mindset I adapted after trying to meet everyone''s expectations. Surely, I was a professional writer! I had to do things in a certain way! It had to be good! Such things always plagued my mind, and most of the time the sentiment I had towards my novels were nothing more than pure hatred if not something more twisted.


    Though in retrospect my writing wasn''t good... The novels were enjoyable, the writing though? Oof.


    No matter how much everyone tried to cheer me I was in denial. So after starting college and realizing that I actually didn''t have that much time to write anymore I kind of realized. Since I suck at this, why not focus on a single thing? So I did.


    I regret it. I''ve never not regretted it. And yet I didn''t come back, I didn''t have the face to. It felt... bad. Awful. In this two year gap I wrote a lot. Was it for the current posted stories, no. It was mostly scrapped stuff.


    It never left my mind, even though it was something I enjoyed. To come back felt... wrong. I couldn''t just come back and begin writing as if nothing happened. Like I said, I didn''t think my novels were good at all! And thus, I didn''t come back, I simply tried to one up myself exploring a lot of topics for novels and stuff. Some were great some were good and some bad. But all of the novels never got too far since I wanted the perfect start.


    As you''ve all guessed, nothing is perfect. I didn''t know what I was doing a month ago, bored out of my mind, but for some reason I got this weird itch to read Gender Bender stories, yum! My favorite for years! Honestly it was like a guilty pleasure, they tend to be really bad. So I read quite a few, and a lot of them were lacking translation or dropped. Funny how that works.


    In short I didn''t want to come back because I didn''t think my stories were ''good enough''.  But for some reason I thought, wow I should read my old stories! Somehow I got over the fact that I was literally afraid to click on this site (literally not a joke, and I did get a mini-heart attack seeing the amount of notifications I had), it just felt like facing the past I was ashamed of. I still am.


    And so I began reading my first story, this story. Gotta start with the worst one! I did cringe a bit of course. Just slightly, a bit. But... Why was it like this? Surely... I don''t remember it like this?


    It was an enjoyable read. Incredibly so. Perhaps it was cliche''d and hit every single one of them but... The character interactions felt... Magical. At this point I had completely forgotten what happened in the story so I got to experience the reader side of things and just wow. I truly was blown away. Of course, it was far from perfect but I would say compared to all the other stuff I read in the past 2 years. It was above average.


    And so, I decided that I would seriously reread everything and try to continue the story. Leah, (my other novel), is in the middle of a rewrite and its looking good.


    Anyway, what am I trying to say? I would always wallow in my misery and mistakes. As a lot of you might''ve guessed if anyone read the author notes on my stories I had literal mental problems. Well mostly insecurities, and so I feel regretful for being so blind. The novels weren''t bad, I was just delusional. It''s not to say one shouldn''t aim for greater heights, but not in the way I did it. It was an obsession.


    That''s why when i quit I felt relief. Because I was forcing myself to try to be better and match everyone''s expectations, even though I seriously doubt there were a lot of them in retrospect. It just boiled down to do better.


    Well anyway, what I am trying to say is. I am sorry for leaving. And I am happy to be back, I no longer have a weak mental state. So, if you won''t continue reading well, sucks but I understand!


    Back to the old ways I go. Whether it is Azrie or Alice, it hardly matters anymore. I just wish to remember and go back to dreamland. Same as back then, same as always.


    Thank you all for 400k, 500k and almost 600k. I do not remember what the view count was when I left, but it certainly wasn''t so big. So thank you all.


    Here are some of the projects that kinda got further in the 2 years.


    Cover for cancelled rewrite of Master Craftsman


    Concept Art for Yami but in a different novel rewrite (Yes there were two rewrites).


    Concept Art of Aqua, the main character of a LitRPG novel called BlackBlood: Dungeons. It never went past chapter 5 not a concept I''d enjoy in the long run. She kind of looks like a Vtuber though... Though she is an awesome character, she might be an MC in a different novel! Big might since uh, Leah is kind of main priority.


    And finally. Concept art for my smut novel that never came to be.


    Huh, you actually thought I would write a smut novel?! Go to furaffinity or something, this is a sacred land. Begone!

 (Chpt. 85) Runaway (2)

    Azrie


    This is from my chapter backlog so it''s writing from 2 years ago, no I am not going to rewrite it. Worth noting that, in fact out of the 30k or so backlog this is the only chapter I can post. After this, all new writing!


    Plot: Yami and Ari left the city on a dungeon subjugation quest as Aizen did her things at the Academy and ultimately became a priest. Yami found a talking skeleton and signed a contract with it, she ended up being called a necromancer by the adventurer party she was with as they ran away. Yami went to the following town instead of the capital in fear of a Holy Knight giving chase inside the capital. Inside the next town ''Niyer'' North of the Capital. Yami makes a Legendary Armor, the town''s appraiser ends up trying to confiscate it, but Yami retaliates with her summons. Burning part of the town down. Ari and Yami diguise themselves to escape. This following scene is right after disguising.


    ?Yami?


    Why?¡ª Why did I look like this?! I mean, I did ask for long hair and puffy cheeks, but this!? This wasn¡¯t right, why? It didn¡¯t make sense, did I even think about it? No, I didn¡¯t, then why?! I simply thought of a female version of my old avatar, and I ended with this, this didn¡¯t make sense¡­


    ¡°Wait¡­ it¡¯s not the right color¡­¡± I muttered with disbelief. My eyes weren¡¯t brown, they were dead-black, I didn¡¯t notice it, but it was definitely a difference. ¡°Ah, I am glad¡­¡± I was about to have a panic attack.


    ¡°Yami is something wrong? You seemed really panicked for a second.¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­ it¡¯s nothing¡­¡± It¡¯s nothing¡­ ¡°Well, now into the clothes.¡±


    I paused. ¡°Enchant!¡±


    I got the same old menu and browsed under the useless category, and there it was. Floating in my vision, the key to getting out of this mess unscathed. I mean, I would look weird if I was wearing some dead person¡¯s clothes.


    Item appearance change ?¡ª 300MN


    And so I pressed on the button, nothing happened.


    ¡°Hey Ari, do I have to think about it or something?¡±


    ¡°Well, whenever appearance changes were needed, people usually made a really detailed drawing for the enchanter, and also brought a lot of items, because you know ?¡ª can¡¯t guarantee the enchantment part.¡± Ah¡­ So I needed to think about it.


    Let¡¯s see¡­ Yeah, that would be nice¡­ I nodded fantasizing about my favorite warrior armor set, I mean¡­ I wasn¡¯t quite the warrior, but I always thought it was cool. A long trench coat, a small hat-like helmet, and gloves with spikes. Awa¡­ I was already fantasizing about being cool.


    And then it happened, my clothes lit up and¡­ shone for a second before becoming an entirely different thing. Enchanting was amazing! Although, I guess I was quite OP, huh?


    Wait¡­ I mean. I was wearing a trench coat, but why was it so long? It was hitting my ankles, and why was it open styled?!


    Ari started laughing as I looked at myself. It was a long oversized trench coat, my glove was spiked so at least that was accurate. As far as hat went, well. There was nothing, so I basically had an oversized trench coat and a glove. No, that wasn¡¯t all¡­


    I pressed my belly, this was too lewd. Why did my top suddenly become one of those that exposed one¡¯s belly, and why did my skirt become a mini-short?! It at least covered half of my thigh, but it was still too lewd. Why?!


    ¡°I didn¡¯t ask for this¡­¡± I muttered in desperation.


    ¡°On second thought, I just want a robe¡­ or a cloak, or something to cover myself¡­¡± Ari spontaneously requested. Yeah, I didn¡¯t blame her. I looked downright stupid.


    I looked at the puddle, at least I looked like an entirely different person, so there was that. It was kind of sad, but I guess it was a sacrifice. I never really felt attracted to girls, but being a girl was tiring. I always tried not to think about it, but bathrooms made me tense¡­ and this¡­ just makes it worse¡­


    ¡°Ha¡­ Why do things have to be like this¡­¡± My shoulders dropped. I felt a caress on my head, it was Ari. I lifted my gaze with confusion.


    ¡°Ahaha¡­ I just thought you were cute and needed that¡­¡±


    ¡°Thank you¡­¡± I guess she wasn¡¯t expecting it?¡ª I wasn¡¯t expecting it. Having my ears uncovered felt nice, although I did not feel like having a finger pointing at me all the time.


    ¡°Hey Ari, what can I do about this¡­¡± I pointed at my ears, I could feel them twitching every time they picked up a sound, I guess having them covered for so long was bad. But there was also a problem, the other ring had stopped working. Although, I guess you cannot stack item effects on one another, which I suppose would be kind of broken¡­


    As I monologued Ari was thinking.


    ¡°Welllll¡­ We could say they are an item?¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡± How would that work?


    ¡°Well, like a tiara with cat ears or something, and it allows its user to be more aware or something! I mean¡­ I¡¯ve seen plenty of stupid items, inventing one wouldn¡¯t really be a problem¡­¡± Stupid items? Yeah, there were plenty of those¡­ Including my aura rings¡­ Talking about rings¡­


    I looked at my hand, and could actually see my black ring, it wasn¡¯t leaking aura anymore. The disguise had made my leather glove to simply look like one of those fingerless gloves, so I could see my rings. But, I got curious¡­


    ¡°Why is it¡­¡± I drew my hand closer to myself and noticed the ring¡­ ¡°Ah¡­ how stupid¡­¡± I muttered, what would happen if it broke? Well, I knew what would happen, but am I not cursed or something? No wait¡­ I could enchant the ring with mending! I was a genius¡­


    ¡°So¡­ What do you think about my idea?¡± Ari nervously asked as she looked at me.


    ¡°Sounds fine, but¡­ how would we make it look like an item?¡± I mean, they looked plenty real.


    ¡°Well, just like¡­ wear a headband or something, or you could just like¡­ hide them under your hair¡­¡±


    ¡°Oh right¡­¡± I recalled how the kind inn-keeper did it. She used some type of clips, but couldn¡¯t I use something like a headband or something? Wait, where would I even get a headband?


    ¡°Hey Ari, I don¡¯t think I got either of those two things¡­¡± She started to think and then her face lit up


    ¡°Why not buy them?¡±


    ¡°Eh, but that is?¡ª Oh¡­¡± We looked completely different, however, my ears were still uncovered. I was still slightly hesitant. ¡°Ari, are you telling me you will go to buy it?¡± She nodded. Although well, her clothing hadn¡¯t changed.


    Ah¡­ I was uneasy! I don¡¯t even remember how many coins I had! I remember the obsidian and cobalt coins I got. I mean, that was about right. But wait¡­ where were my other coins?!


    ¡°I lost it¡­¡±


    ¡°What did you lose?¡± Ari wasn¡¯t following


    ¡°I lost my other coin pouch¡­¡±


    ¡°When?¡± Ari asked with genuine concern.


    ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know all I have left are obsidian and cobalt coins¡­¡± Ari suddenly became flat-faced.


    ¡°You are panicking, about that?¡± I nodded. ¡°Sigh¡­ Adventurers get paid small fortunes you know? One mithril coin is worth one-thousand gold coins!¡± Oh¡­


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t that mean this is still bad?! I mean, if I send you with even a cobalt coin wouldn¡¯t that make thugs want to prey on you or something?!¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ yes¡­¡±


    We were in a conundrum.


    ¡°I mean, it can¡¯t be that bad, right?¡± Ari asked with hope, but I shook my head.


    ¡°Considering last time I showed money I got assaulted by thieves, it¡¯s a no.¡± Ari sighed seeing my reply, it wasn¡¯t even a conundrum to begin with, it was simply a no choice kind of thing.


    ¡°So, now what? We can go out there and everyone can look at your ears!¡± Right¡­


    ¡°Well¡­ I¡­¡± She was right, something needed to happen, something needed to be done, and yet. I was simply there, risking being caught and drawing even more attention.


    Sigh¡­ if only I could¡­


    Wait, can¡¯t I just hide them? I mean, like maybe change their orientation or make my hair longer¡­ I had the enchanted collar with the blessed curse! Something told me it had to be possible, I mean, it had to be possible. Otherwise it simply wouldn¡¯t make much sense, at least I thought so anyway.


    ¡°So¡­ what¡¯s the plan?¡± Ari asked as she saw me think in my spot. Of course, I smiled, I had already found a plan. I simply had to use the collar again, and that would be it.


    ¡°Just watch,¡± I said with a smirk. It was going to be perfect. First put a bit of mana on the ring anddd¡­ think, the ears moving slowly closer to the place where normal ears would be¡­ Just them changing to human ears would be nice.


    Creak¡­


    ¡°Eeek!¡± I held the side of my head with extreme pain as I felt my muscles and bones shifting around, why was it so painful?! The creaking continued for a few seconds, I wanted to stop it but I couldn¡¯t.


    ¡°Um Yami?¡± Ari hopelessly extended her hand towards me as I held my head, nothing could be done. I had no idea if she could hear the creaking, but it was painful. It hurt, it hurt, it hurt!


    ¡°I-I made a¡­ few, mistakes¡­¡± It was so painful, but it started to slow down, I felt my eyes get teary for a few seconds.


    I panted as I felt the pain subdue. Finally letting my hands off my head and placing them on my knees to not fall on the ground. It was truly painful, it felt as if I had broken some bones¡ª having things drilled into my head, a migraine; a head-splitting headache. I couldn¡¯t truly explain the experience with words, it was mind-numbingly painful.


    ¡°Em Yami¡­¡± Now what? ¡°Your ears are not hidden¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­ What do you mean?¡± My ears were still pained so I didn¡¯t want to touch them.


    ¡°Well¡­¡± I looked down at the puddle below me.


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± My ears were still pretty much the same, they were actually slightly bigger. What? Why? I had so many questions and not enough answers however¡­ Why did it hurt so much?!


    ¡°So¡­ can you hide them under your hair or something?¡± Well, I mean.


    Following Ari¡¯s suggestion I touched my ear and?¡ª


    ¡°Ouch¡­¡± They were strained from the shifting around my skull. ¡°It hurts, so¡­ no.¡± I sighed.


    After a brief pause I made my decision. Would things continue like this? So much for trying to stay under the radar only for a street to burst into a pillar of flames? Was this really what things amounted to?


    ¡°Hey Ari.¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡± She tilted her head.


    ¡°Do you think it matters?¡±


    ¡°Hm?¡± I guess she wasn¡¯t following.


    ¡°Do you think it matters that I am a beastkin?¡±


    ¡°Well, not really. But you always seemed so on the edge about not drawing attention. So, I figured it mattered...¡± Very much true. ¡°I mean, it doesn¡¯t really seem to matter to you that I am linked to the church, so¡­¡± That was also true.


    I sighed. ¡°I guess I worried for nothing.¡±


    As soon as I finally relaxed from the tension I felt my body¡¯s fatigue build up. I guess I wasn¡¯t Aizen to play god, I sighed and made the mental status note. Skipping over basically everything I focused solely on my mana.


    [MP: 3200/34590(+ 50%) ?¡ª 4800/51,885 In combat.]


    Okay¡­ Since when did it actually do the calculation? I mean, I suppose I could do it in a few seconds multiplying by one-point-five, but that wasn¡¯t the point! But I guess I already knew the answer to why I felt so fatigued, I had forgotten that summoning was so taxing in terms of mana.


    How much would Jer be? Level 93, would be around¡­ 8,000? That¡¯s quite a lot. Yeah no wonder¡­


    ¡°Hey Ari, I am pretty tired. Let¡¯s go to an inn or something.¡±


    ¡°Um Yami, are you sure? I mean, if we go back¡­¡±


    ¡°I mean a new inn¡­ I feel as if I forgot something on the last one. But I feel the elf is going to raid the place..¡±


    ¡°Sigh¡­ elves are really weird, huh?¡± Ari asked in tiredness. Every single elf we had met had been overly clingy, simply weird or stubborn. Why?


    ¡°Well, we might also need to leave the capital¡­¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡­ now that you mention it, yeah¡­¡±


    We basically declared war on the country by taking the armor back, at least I think? Well, if they think we are dead it might not escalate further than that. Thankfully¡­ but it was still problematic.


    ¡°So Yami, how should I call you now?¡± Hmm? ¡°We need new identities after all, at least for the time being. So Dark Shadow is pretty much dead, same goes for Ari. And well, the adventurer Yami is also kind of dead.¡± Hah¡­


    I thought for a second. ¡°Kuro is fine¡­¡±


    ¡°Hmm, is that okay? Isn¡¯t that his name too?¡± Whose? Ah right¡­


    ¡°Yeah it¡¯s fine, what about you?¡± What kind of name would Ari choose?


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Sera would be fine, I suppose¡­¡± Hm?


    ¡°Is it fine?¡±


    Ari had a brief pause. ¡°Yes¡­ Sera¡­¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a weird name,¡± never heard it before, to be honest.


    She started fidgeting. ¡°Yeah, it stands for Seraphim, although I like to believe it simply is Sera¡­¡± Her voice rang hollow as she finished her sentence, I could see her biting her lip. I suppose it was better to drop the subject.


    ¡°I see¡­ Well, let us go Sera.¡±


    ¡°Right Kuro¡­¡± Wow, I felt so awkward. Ari was the same.


    ¡°What about our roles? Are we adventurers?¡±


    ¡°Yeah sure.¡± I thought for a second before taking out my dagger and placing it on my waist. I felt a bit awkward, I never really paid attention to my body or anything, but this was more touching than usual. After I slid it down the side of my waist and thigh I sighed.


    ¡°And I thought I was getting used to it¡­¡± I muttered under my breath. ¡°Well, I am a rouge, and you are?¡±


    ¡°Hmmm¡­¡± Ari looked to the sky as she thought before finally shrugging. ¡°No idea¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡±


    ¡°I have an idea Ya-Kuro!¡± So she became the inverse Aizen? ¡°How about I am a pretty noble girl and you are my hired bodyguard!¡± Oooh. I like the idea.


    ¡°Sure!¡± I smiled.


    ¡°Well for now, let us get an inn. I want to rest¡­¡± Well, actually if I used any more mana I would probably faint. Hah¡­


    ¡°Hmhm¡­¡± Ari got to thinking. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t remember many inns.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll find something.¡±


    Ari cheerfully nodded. I suppose it was time to get going, albeit calling her Sera was going to insanely hard if not flatout impossible. Since I am roleplaying as a bodyguard I suppose I could call her mistress or something. Weird¡­


    ¡°Let¡¯s get going.¡± Ari nodded once again and we started walking.


    I felt an increasing anxiety building up in my head ?¡ª what if they noticed, would I get attacked for no particular reason, how bad is the discrimination around here? So many questions and yet so little answers, it was a bit annoying all things considered, but sadly there was not many things we could do.


    ¡°All the inns are in the plaza, no?¡±


    ¡°Yes Ya-Kuro¡­¡± Ah¡­


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ll be sure to protect MIstress¡­¡±


    She suddenly blushed.


    ¡°Just Sera is fine¡­¡±


    ¡°No no no, such a fine lady needs a servant that respects her.¡±


    I saw her cheeks get increasingly red but she said nothing. Teasing her was slightly fun.


    As I thought we entered the street, it was blooming with stands and little small businesses. Ari quietly followed behind me, looking at her surroundings with warryness.


    While there were a lot of people walking and going about their day I could see a heavy atmosphere ?¡ª everyone was looking to the ground and no one was really focused at things. It just looked gloomy and grim, the only thing that echoed on the streets were the steps of the doomed.


    However, the soulless rhythmic footsteps changed as we joined. Effectively breaking the pace and drawing all the eyes towards us. I made eye contact with a few people, everyone looked just as shocked.


    Even though I was feeling uncomfortable it was something I had to ignore. With my head held high and chest puffed I continued walking. Ari meekly followed behind me.


    My bouncy ears drew all the eyes on the street ?¡ª the vendors, the bypassers, even the kids were pointing at me. Well, as much as they could; they were also mentally exhausted from the previous disaster. But it was certainly awkward.


    Ari and I continued walking through the cobblestone, avoiding eye contact for the most part. People didn¡¯t stare as much once we continued walking, they simply kept looking at the ground with helplessness. Now that I think about it¡­ How many people died in my little tantrum?


    Were they NPCs? That certainly wasn¡¯t it, I wanted to feel guilty, but why couldn¡¯t I feel anything¡­ Even Aizen would feel some remorse¡­ albeit it was for a different reason, but why¡­. Why was it that I couldn¡¯t feel remorse about it? How frustrating¡­


    Are things going to continue like this¡­


    I sighed as we entered the main plaza, ashes were falling down on the street as if it was snow, a pillar of smoke was rising to the skies. It was a rather grim day all things considered, I was hungry¡­ I wanted to rest.


    I assume Ari felt the same. She was looking somewhere else though.


    ¡°Look at her belongings!¡± A shout attracted my attention.


    There it was, an elf standing outside the inn I had just been in. He was shouting at guards, the elf himself didn¡¯t look to be doing so good. His messy hair and completely battered attire spoke for itself, his eyes were akin to a wolf.


    I could see his deep frown.


    ¡°Fuck¡­ we need to find out her secrets! There is no way she died¡­ But¡­¡±


    ¡°Sir¡­ she died¡­¡± The knight captain held his shoulder. ¡°We found her burned clothes.¡±


    Eh¡­


    I looked at Ari and she mischievously smiled.


    The elf was biting his finger. ¡°Still¡­ What about the dragon!? How can it disappear like that?!¡±


    ¡°That is¡­ it¡¯s currently under investigation¡­¡± The captain distanced himself.


    ¡°Tch, how useless!¡± The elf was certainly mad as he stomped on the ground.


    I sighed, I mean¡­ what was he doing searching my room? There was nothing there¡­


    ¡°We found something!¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± What did they find?


    ¡°WHAT IS IT?!¡± Awa, the elf was certainly desperate.


    ¡°It¡¯s¡­ a coin pouch! The inn-keeper was hiding it!¡± Eh¡­


    ¡°Hey Y-Kuro¡­ isn¡¯t that yours¡­¡±


    ¡°It is¡­¡± Looks like that¡¯s where it went¡­ ¡°Well¡­ let us get going, while I certainly would like to get my coins back¡­ it¡¯s better to avoid the crazed elf, knowing him it would be nothing but trouble.¡±


    ¡°I agree¡­¡±


    The elf ignored us as he continued arguing with his soldiers. Though it sounded like the innkeeper was fine. So there was that.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    ¡°Yea¡­¡±


    We continued walking and calmly looked around for an inn, well as calmly as we could while knowing the elf was in the same plaza as us. It was certainly a hard thing.


    In the end, we couldn¡¯t really pinpoint an inn, I wanted something cheap. Well, as cheap as we could say it was. Albeit paying with a pretty coin would be quite bad¡­ Ah¡­


    ¡°Hey Kuro¡­¡± Eh? ¡°How about we get an expensive inn? Like the most expensive one¡­¡±


    ¡°Sure¡­¡± I trusted Ari to an extent regarding these type of decisions, so it made sense. Now the problem was who to ask¡­


    As I thought I saw a guild receptionist coming out of the building. She well¡­ she had a pretty face as needed for the adventurers ¡ª brunette short hair and fluttering eyelashes and puffy cheeks. She probably was on a break or something. But well, knowing that guild staff was trained to not discriminate I think it was fine. Well, trained wouldn¡¯t be the right word, but I had nothing but positive experiences with them.


    Ari and I walked towards her.


    ¡°Excuse me¡­¡± Well, I was the one doing the talking as usual.


    ¡°Oh I am on br?e¡ª a cat-kin¡­¡± Wow, how surprising.


    ¡°I was wondering if you knew what the most luxurious and expensive inn is¡­ Mistress likes luxury you see¡­¡± I gestured towards Ari, she looked at the receptionist with an innocent face.


    ¡°I-I see¡­ Luxurious, is it?¡± We nodded. ¡°Well, there is the Bottomrock inn¡­¡± Eh? ¡°You see that place?¡± She pointed at a small tunnel across the street. It had a few people coming in and out of it, but most of them were well-dressed.


    ¡°That¡¯s Bottomrock, although I don¡¯t know if they allow beastkin... I have no problem with races, but you see how people around here are. The only reason elves are allowed is because they often serve an important role regarding their class...:¡± Ah¡­


    ¡°Ah I see¡­ thank you.¡± We turned around and left the receptionist standing there.


    ¡°Em, wait! I have a request¡­¡± We turned around to see the receptionist looking at me with flushed cheeks. ¡°Can I¡­ touch them?¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± Did I hear it right?


    ¡°I know beastkins don¡¯t like it that much, but you see I have always wanted to touch them once¡­¡± Ehhhh.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine Ya-Kuro.¡± Ari firmly grabbed my hand, I was screwed¡­


    ¡°S-Sure¡­¡± I leaned my head as the receptionist meekly approached.


    ¡°I¡¯ll try to be gentle¡­¡± I heard her sweet words as I saw a shadow creeping on my own.


    ¡°Y-yes¡­¡± Her fingers carefully touched my ears, it felt nice.


    Tracing the rim of my ear, gently. It felt nice¡­ She started to rub it and run her nails across them touching the base of my head, up and down¡­ The sensation was sensitive and yet pleasant as she rubbed them¡­ it was nice¡­


    ¡°Nya¡­¡± Did I¡­


    ¡°I want to do it too¡­¡± Ari suddenly joined in and started touching my ears as well.


    ¡°Thi?¡ª nya¡­ this¡­¡± It felt so nice¡­ but this was wrong¡­ Why¡­ No, I wasn¡¯t going to let my ears get assaulted by skilled hands! ¡°Aah! Stop!¡± I managed to jank my head out of their reach.


    ¡°My, my¡­ I am sorry I got carried away¡­¡± The receptionist was smiling. I looked at Ari and she just averted her gaze. ¡°Sorry, it¡¯s rare to see beastkin around here. Since the capital doesn¡¯t really allow them. Arlesh doesn¡¯t really have any particular treatment for beastkin due to it being a trading town.¡± Oh. ¡°But it was nice knowing you.¡± She leaned towards me, what was she doing!?


    ?! She touched my ears one last time.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± Eh¡­


    ¡°Well, let us go¡­ Quick!¡± Ari hurriedly tugged on my arm, the receptionist simply touched her cheek and smiled at me. Awa¡­ what was happening. Why was my face so hot?!


    As I managed to calm down, we finally arrived at a tunnel. It had a sign called Bottomrock. A single person stood there. It was a well-dressed old man, he had a tuxedo and a gentle smile with his ashen hair and mustache.


    ¡°What can I do for you?¡± His voice was gentle, and practically didn¡¯t change in spite of him clearly looking at my ears.


    ¡°A room for¡­ Mistress¡­¡± Ahhh, how hard¡­


    ¡°So a room for two? Hmm¡­¡± He looked at twitching ears with curiosity. ¡°I don¡¯t mean to discriminate, but the room price might have to go up due to cleaning fees¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­¡±


    ¡°Beastkins shed fur, no? We need to clean that¡­¡± Ah¡­ did they shed?


    ¡°Sure¡­¡± This time Ari agreed.


    ¡°How long do both of you intend to stay?¡±


    ¡°One day¡­¡± I wanted to leave as soon as possible. Ari nodded.


    ¡°I see¡­ That would be two cobalt coins.¡± He extended his gloved hand towards me.


    It was quite the price increase.


    ¡°S-Sure¡­¡± I awkwardly pretended to put my hand into my trench coat and took out two cobalt coins. I handed it to him, his smile flinched a bit, but didn¡¯t say anything. I guess he wasn¡¯t expecting us to be able to pay?


    ¡°Here is your key.¡± I extended my hand to receive it.


    ¡°Eh¡­¡± It was a shiny yellow rock.


    ¡°Simply walk down and enjoy your stay.¡± Ehh¡­ ¡°The rock guides you into your room.¡±


    ¡°O-Okay¡­¡± What a weird system.


    ¡°Well let us go  A-Mistress.¡± She nodded and held my hand.


    Quickly descending onto the darkness, I had no idea where we were walking.


    The eternal darkness was hard to walk in, I kind of wondered why was there no light at the bottom. Where were the rooms, where was the staff? So many questions to ask¡­


    I blinked, and?¡ª


    ¡°Eh¡­¡±


    ¡°What¡­¡±


    We were both in a room. It was entirely made out of wood, the floor was made out of grey carpet, probably of some type of animal. It was fluffy and our feet got buried in it. There was a single king size bed with bed-sheets made out of animal fur as well.


    The light was dim, I saw some rocks on the roof that gave quite the natural light. I kind of liked the ambient. It was a well furnished room with nightstands, a desk and another door, probably a bathroom.


    ¡°Hey, Yami¡­¡±


    ¡°Y-Yes?¡±


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­¡±


    We got teleported into the room?


    I looked behind us and there was a single door. With increasing curiosity I opened it and¡­ it was looking into a dark abyss, there was nothing. The light from our room lit the floor of the abyss ever so slightly but there was nothing to be seen on the empty void.


    I closed the door.


    ¡°Whatever¡­ we are here now¡­¡±


    ¡°Yea¡­¡± Ari seemed a bit confused still. But I was tired, the first thing I did was jump on the bed and lay there.


    ¡°Are you going to sleep now?¡±


    ¡°Probably¡­¡±


    I was tired¡­ The bed was nice, soft, fluffy, warm, it was perfect¡­ I fell asleep as Ari did something else. I think she simply went into the bathroom to relax, although I did see her eyeing my ears. I felt a bit startled but there was not much I could do about it, I mean¡­ my ears being tampered with was annoying but it felt nice. I couldn¡¯t complain much.

 (New Beginnings, Chpt. 87) Uncertainty and Family

    Azrie


    Formatting nightmare at the start, might look slightly awkward on phone, sorry in advance! Unedited.


    New Beginnings Chpt. 87: Uncertainty and Family


    ?Yami?


    Screams echo everywhere.


    The rippling of the fire.


    It ends with an eerie silence.


    A heavy scent of iron.


    Just a whiff for me to shiver.


    Crimson fills my vision.


    It all ends in death.


    By my hand they die.


    It all becomes insignificant.


    Like an ember against the wind.


    Unable to fight.


    In the end.


    It vanishes.


    Like broken glass


    IT BREAKS?¡ª


    ¡°Aah!¡± I shrieked and held my head. What kind of nightmare is that?! My face became ugly in an instant. Death, a ripper of death. Everything I did and touched lead to death. Everything¡­


    In a cold sweat I looked around the room. I was. In an inn. An elf¡­ Ari¡­ My summons. Trouble¡­ It all clicked as I remembered things.


    Burning the town down in order to escape the elf, it got out of hand. I disguised myself along with Ari and we ended up at the inn. I looked around the room. Ari slept next to me in the gigantic bed, but I was sweating. The coziness of the wood and warmness of the dim ceiling-light unable to calm my shaking heart.


    I was feeling a headache from my dream, or rather nightmare. I hadn¡¯t killed anyone in this incident. Death didn''t seem to bother me since everything had started but¡­ How easy everything got out of hand¡­ It was troublesome¡­ Too troublesome¡­


    ¡°Hmm?¡± Ari rubbed her eyes, she still looked similar to before the change. Just a lot more refined and a much more tidy haircut with bangs. I on the other hand was simply the genderbent version of my old avatar.


    Ari looked around in confusion, unable to tell the time of the day inside the room, until finally, her gaze landed on me.


    ¡°Is something wrong Yami?¡± She paused. ¡°You¡¯re¡­ sweating? Is everything okay?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s¡­ okay¡­¡± I muttered my answer. I was still unsure. Everything was objectively messy. I didn¡¯t want to extinguish life wherever I went. I just wanted to live with Ari and Aizen, enjoy what we were doing¡­


    ¡°You don¡¯t seem okay.¡± Ari frowned, and then whispered. ¡°Tell me, what¡¯s going on in your mind?¡±


    I sighed. ¡°I am finally realizing that; doing whatever I want seems to cause more trouble than what is worth. But that¡¯s not the problem¡­¡± I paused, feeling burdened. ¡°This time it got out of hand, and people nearly died. Death is not the issue, but¡­¡±


    Ari looked at me for a second before looking at the ceiling.


    ¡°But it¡¯s not something we can do in the long run?¡± She asked, completing the sentence for me.


    My eyes widened, but she simply gave me a wry smile.


    ¡°I think the same way, Yami. It¡¯s¡­ concerning to have a dragon and you as my sisters¡­¡± Right. ¡°But if it means anything¡­¡± She paused and looked at my eyes. ¡°I am enjoying this adventure of ours!¡±


    I smiled. ¡°I understand, though it¡¯s not sustainable to parade ourselves too much. Perhaps we should just leave the continent, past this whole¡­ Church, racism, and whatever else nonsense.¡±


    Ari nodded. ¡°I¡¯d like that a lot.¡±


    I guess¡­ I was worrying a bit too much about things¡­ At last, my heart was finally calming down. Then I had to think about how to move forward, and there was only one right answer.


    ¡°Well we should leave this whole town. With that elf lurking around, I simply do not feel safe¡­¡±


    Ari heavily nodded. ¡°I didn¡¯t think all elves would be so callous.¡± Sigh, it did feel that way, didn¡¯t it? ¡°Though, for now I want you to do something.¡±


    ¡°Do something?¡± I tilted my head.


    ¡°Yep! Come closer!¡± She beckoned, her hand gesturing me towards her on the bed. I crawled towards her somewhat lazily. What could she possibly need?


    As I laid in front of her. She?¡ª pounced?!


    ¡°Ari?!¡± Before I could react she was all over me.


    ¡°Yami, I don¡¯t like your expression! For the first time you seemed troubled! I hate it!¡± Her voice came off childish, but that wasn¡¯t the issue.


    ¡°Nyaa!¡± I squirmed. Why was she touching my ears and tail?! It was nice! It made me feel¡­ calm.


    ¡°Just sit still! I need to destress too!¡± She protested as she tried harder, eventually I stopped resisting so much.


    Ari continued patting me and rubbing me like a household cat. But, truth be told it felt like a heavenly massage. Too nice. Who would move under such conditions? My entire body relaxed and melted like a puddle. Wait?¡ª


    I tensed up. I wasn¡¯t a cat! But before I could get up, Ari hugged my back.


    ¡°Yami, I am sorry¡­¡± She said somewhat dispirited. ¡°I just did what I thought was right at the moment¡­ I truly did not like your expression.¡±


    ¡°I¡­ understand.¡± I sighed. Having family sure is troublesome.


    ¡°Yami?¡±


    ¡°Yeah?¡± I asked. Why was she whispering to me?


    ¡°Let me worry about your things, same goes to Aizen, you both shouldn¡¯t be worrying about these type of things.¡±


    Even though her voice was supposed to be reassuring, I frowned. Ari was a young girl. Not my parent, or guardian. We were supposed to worry about such things, not Ari. But at the same time, I couldn¡¯t deny it to her¡­ It sounded too important for her. I closed my eyes, and thought for a second before finally speaking.


    ¡°I think we should all worry for all of us. We are family.¡± It was dry like a desert, but¡­ It felt right to say¡­


    Ari didn¡¯t say anything for a second, but her arms relaxed on my back. ¡°Then let us worry together!¡± She hugged me tighter.


    I smiled.


    Though I wanted to get going, her hugs were really distracting! In the end, I succumbed to Ari¡¯s love for a couple of minutes.


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    ¡°Alright! Let us go!¡± I said as I straightened my clothes. Ari nodded at me with a small smile. She enjoyed it a bit too much. Though¡­ My face grew slightly flushed as my tail swished about.


    I hated to admit it, but I had gotten carried away just as much as her. I sighed. First thing in my to-do list was to get a new Dad¡­


    ¡°Pfff~¡± I chuckled and put my hand forth. ¡°I summon thee, Dad! The undead hero!¡± My arm twitched as I struggled to not laugh.


    In retrospect calling a skeleton Dad was amusing for me. It was something Jer chose in the heat of the moment, of calling him father. It was weird, yes, but now?


    ¡°I see you¡¯re doing a lot better now. Glad to see you can laugh at my decisions now.¡± A deep voice spoke to me. It carried seriousness, though I could feel another emotion behind it. Soon my speaking skeleton was summoned.


    Jer! My faithful summon. Thankfully he was summoned in a complete manner! His undead armor was restored and standing on his own two feet. Thankfully, we didn¡¯t need to put him together. That would¡¯ve been troublesome. I mean, considering he was split in half last time.


    I nodded at Jer. ¡°Alright Dad, need you to put on your new armor.¡± Jer even though he was a skeleton in armor, stiffened. I could see it. Without realizing it, I found myself smiling.


    Is this how Aizen feels about teasing people? Well, ignoring whether to tease Jer or not, he needs a new replacement.


    Not thinking twice about it, I took the armor pieces that I had made in my inventory and gave them to Jer.


    ¡°Dad, go get changed in the bathroom.¡± I commanded, he stiffly went inside and closed the door.


    ¡°Hmm, Yami,¡± Ari scrutinized me. ¡°You¡¯re starting to sound like Aizen.¡±


    ¡°A bit¡­¡± I chuckled. ¡°Though, it did make things awkward for me, so I think it¡¯s justified to make him repent.¡± And the word father, dad, etc. Carried zero weight for me. So it was. ¡°Two birds with one stone.¡± Ah, I said that out-loud.


    ¡°If you say so¡­¡± She muttered. ¡°Though, maybe don¡¯t be so hard on him. I mean, he is bound to you till either of you break the contract. Which is unlikely.¡± Right.


    ¡°I understand, perhaps it¡¯s a bit too much to constantly tease him,¡± I nodded. Though the idea was still something that made me smile. ¡°A bit of teasing will not hurt though.¡±


    Ari sighed. ¡°In the end, the both of you are rather similar.¡± I smiled hearing Ari¡¯s mutter.


    Jer came out of the bathroom. His armor was now a mix of dark and nearly silvery-white. It was honestly rather nice, and polarizing, if that was even the right word for it. The contrast was somewhat charming. If one dyed the black parts in white, he would¡¯ve looked rather imposing to be honest.


    ¡°Oh, you look great. Like a total role-model!¡± I exclaimed, unable to hold back my jokes.


    Jer nodded without thinking. ¡°I do look awe-inspiring, as much as I did in my past I believe. Though I do believe I will be needing this.¡± Before I could stop him, he took the bed sheets and wrapped them across his entire body.


    Huh? It did look like a cloak. The bedsheets were white so he looked like some sort of nomad, but just enough wrapping and it looked just right. At least it¡¯d be hard to tell they were simply covers.


    To be honest, I was surprised. I didn¡¯t really think of how to cover Jer again. My plan was closer to¡­ Leave as soon as possible and reunite with Aizen. Yep! That was the entire plan! But now at least we wouldn¡¯t need to worry about detainments.


    ¡°Oh that works,¡± Ari said from behind.


    ¡°Alright, then let us leave.¡± I nodded at both of them.


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    ¡°You didn¡¯t tell me you would sneak someone in.¡± Ah what a pain. The inn-keeper was angry at me. I could somewhat see the disgust in his eyes too.


    I sighed. ¡°Mistress had an emergency, here, to compensate.¡± I reached into my coat and took the entire coin bag. At this point I simply didn¡¯t want unnecessary trouble. Ari shuffled awkwardly behind me, eliciting a sigh from me.


    As I placed the bag atop his hand, the heft seemed to surprise the innkeeper as his eyes widened. Taking a cursory peak into it, he nodded to himself and simply looked at us. His smile becoming wider by the minute.


    ¡°Oh my, how could I forget you people told me about a guest. This will certainly cover his expenses as well!¡± He exclaimed, his voice carrying a professional poise I had never heard from this man before. He seemed genuinely happy for us.


    The people around the street took glances at us as we dealt with the innkeeper, but thankfully I wasn¡¯t dressed in ¡°look at me¡± clothes. Just an edgy trench coat, a slightly lewd top and pants. It also helped that my hair wasn¡¯t white for now.


    The innkeeper nodded at us, essentially dismissing us. I turned to Ari.


    ¡°Well, let us go Miss, a long journey awaits.¡± Ari shuffled for a bit, her face flushing, before finally leaning closer to me. Did she want to whisper something to me? I leaned in, and¡­


    ¡°Why must you keep addressing me so formally?! There is barely no one paying attention!¡± Ah!


    Did I want to tell her? Of course! I smiled.


    ¡°I like how you blush about it.¡±


    Though my response didn¡¯t seem to trigger any response as Ari stayed silent and distanced herself from me.


    ¡°I see¡­ I appreciate it¡­¡± Her tone came out weird, but I shrugged. It was time to leave this place. The town that was north of the capital, ¡®Niyer¡¯.


    Without any further words, Dad, Ari and I left on our way to the gate we came from.


    Azrie

 (New Beginnings, Chpt. 86) Uncertainty and Family

    Azrie


    Welcome to the New Beginnings! With a completely overhauled writing style! Witness evolution! Or not, if you don''t like it, too bad... Though hope y''all like the chapter ^^.


    Formatting nightmare at the start, might look slightly awkward on phone, sorry in advance! Unedited.


    New Beginnings Chpt. 86: Uncertainty and Family


    ?Yami?


    Screams echo everywhere.


    The rippling of the fire.


    It ends with an eerie silence.


    A heavy scent of iron.


    Just a whiff for me to shiver.


    Crimson fills my vision.


    It all ends in death.


    By my hand they die.


    It all becomes insignificant.


    Like an ember against the wind.


    Unable to fight.


    In the end.


    It vanishes.


    Like broken glass


    IT BREAKS?¡ª


    ¡°Aah!¡± I shrieked and held my head. What kind of nightmare is that?! My face became ugly in an instant. Death, a reaper of death. Everything I did and touched lead to death. Everything¡­


    In a cold sweat I looked around the room. I was. In an inn. An elf¡­ Ari¡­ My summons. Trouble¡­ It all clicked as I remembered things.


    Burning the town down in order to escape the elf, it got out of hand. I disguised myself along with Ari and we ended up at the inn. I looked around the room. Ari slept next to me in the gigantic bed, but I was sweating. The coziness of the wood and warmness of the dim ceiling-light unable to calm my shaking heart.


    I was feeling a headache from my dream, or rather nightmare. I hadn¡¯t killed anyone in this incident. Death didn''t seem to bother me since everything had started but¡­ How easy everything got out of hand¡­ It was troublesome¡­ Too troublesome¡­


    ¡°Hmm?¡± Ari rubbed her eyes, she still looked similar to before the change. Just a lot more refined and a much more tidy haircut with bangs. I on the other hand was simply the genderbent version of my old avatar.


    Ari looked around in confusion, unable to tell the time of the day inside the room, until finally, her gaze landed on me.


    ¡°Is something wrong Yami?¡± She paused. ¡°You¡¯re¡­ sweating? Is everything okay?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s¡­ okay¡­¡± I muttered my answer. I was still unsure. Everything was objectively messy. I didn¡¯t want to extinguish life wherever I went. I just wanted to live with Ari and Aizen, enjoy what we were doing¡­


    ¡°You don¡¯t seem okay.¡± Ari frowned, and then whispered. ¡°Tell me, what¡¯s going on in your mind?¡±


    I sighed. ¡°I am finally realizing that; doing whatever I want seems to cause more trouble than what is worth. But that¡¯s not the problem¡­¡± I paused, feeling burdened. ¡°This time it got out of hand, and people nearly died. Death is not the issue, but¡­¡±


    Ari looked at me for a second before looking at the ceiling.


    ¡°But it¡¯s not something we can do in the long run?¡± She asked, completing the sentence for me.


    My eyes widened, but she simply gave me a wry smile.


    ¡°I think the same way, Yami. It¡¯s¡­ concerning to have a dragon and you as my sisters¡­¡± Right. ¡°But if it means anything¡­¡± She paused and looked at my eyes. ¡°I am enjoying this adventure of ours!¡±


    I smiled. ¡°I understand, though it¡¯s not sustainable to parade ourselves too much. Perhaps we should just leave the continent, past this whole¡­ Church, racism, and whatever else nonsense.¡±


    Ari nodded. ¡°I¡¯d like that a lot.¡±


    I guess¡­ I was worrying a bit too much about things¡­ At last, my heart was finally calming down. Then I had to think about how to move forward, and there was only one right answer.


    ¡°Well we should leave this whole town. With that elf lurking around, I simply do not feel safe¡­¡±


    Ari heavily nodded. ¡°I didn¡¯t think all elves would be so callous.¡± Sigh, it did feel that way, didn¡¯t it? ¡°Though, for now I want you to do something.¡±


    ¡°Do something?¡± I tilted my head.


    ¡°Yep! Come closer!¡± She beckoned, her hand gesturing me towards her on the bed. I crawled towards her somewhat lazily. What could she possibly need?


    As I laid in front of her. She?¡ª pounced?!


    ¡°Ari?!¡± Before I could react she was all over me.


    ¡°Yami, I don¡¯t like your expression! For the first time you seemed troubled! I hate it!¡± Her voice came off childish, but that wasn¡¯t the issue.


    ¡°Nyaa!¡± I squirmed. Why was she touching my ears and tail?! It was nice! It made me feel¡­ calm.


    ¡°Just sit still! I need to destress too!¡± She protested as she tried harder, eventually I stopped resisting so much.


    Ari continued patting me and rubbing me like a household cat. But, truth be told it felt like a heavenly massage. Too nice. Who would move under such conditions? My entire body relaxed and melted like a puddle. Wait?¡ª


    I tensed up. I wasn¡¯t a cat! But before I could get up, Ari hugged my back.


    ¡°Yami, I am sorry¡­¡± She said somewhat dispirited. ¡°I just did what I thought was right at the moment¡­ I truly did not like your expression.¡±


    ¡°I¡­ understand.¡± I sighed. Having family sure is troublesome.


    ¡°Yami?¡±


    ¡°Yeah?¡± I asked. Why was she whispering to me?


    ¡°Let me worry about your things, same goes to Aizen, you both shouldn¡¯t be worrying about these type of things.¡±


    Even though her voice was supposed to be reassuring, I frowned. Ari was a young girl. Not my parent, or guardian. We were supposed to worry about such things, not Ari. But at the same time, I couldn¡¯t deny it to her¡­ It sounded too important for her. I closed my eyes, and thought for a second before finally speaking.


    ¡°I think we should all worry for all of us. We are family.¡± It was dry like a desert, but¡­ It felt right to say¡­


    Ari didn¡¯t say anything for a second, but her arms relaxed on my back. ¡°Then let us worry together!¡± She hugged me tighter.


    I smiled.


    Though I wanted to get going, her hugs were really distracting! In the end, I succumbed to Ari¡¯s love for a couple of minutes.


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    ¡°Alright! Let us go!¡± I said as I straightened my clothes. Ari nodded at me with a small smile. She enjoyed it a bit too much. Though¡­ My face grew slightly flushed as my tail swished about.


    I hated to admit it, but I had gotten carried away just as much as her. I sighed. First thing in my to-do list was to get a new Dad¡­


    ¡°Pfff~¡± I chuckled and put my hand forth. ¡°I summon thee, Dad! The undead hero!¡± My arm twitched as I struggled to not laugh.


    In retrospect calling a skeleton Dad was amusing for me. It was something Jer chose in the heat of the moment, of calling him father. It was weird, yes, but now?


    ¡°I see you¡¯re doing a lot better now. Glad to see you can laugh at my decisions now.¡± A deep voice spoke to me. It carried seriousness, though I could feel another emotion behind it. Soon my speaking skeleton was summoned.


    Jer! My faithful summon. Thankfully he was summoned in a complete manner! His undead armor was restored and standing on his own two feet. Thankfully, we didn¡¯t need to put him together. That would¡¯ve been troublesome. I mean, considering he was split in half last time.


    I nodded at Jer. ¡°Alright Dad, need you to put on your new armor.¡± Jer even though he was a skeleton in armor, stiffened. I could see it. Without realizing it, I found myself smiling.


    Is this how Aizen feels about teasing people? Well, ignoring whether to tease Jer or not, he needs a new replacement.


    Not thinking twice about it, I took the armor pieces that I had made in my inventory and gave them to Jer.


    ¡°Dad, go get changed in the bathroom.¡± I commanded, he stiffly went inside and closed the door.


    ¡°Hmm, Yami,¡± Ari scrutinized me. ¡°You¡¯re starting to sound like Aizen.¡±


    ¡°A bit¡­¡± I chuckled. ¡°Though, it did make things awkward for me, so I think it¡¯s justified to make him repent.¡± And the word father, dad, etc. Carried zero weight for me. So it was. ¡°Two birds with one stone.¡± Ah, I said that out-loud.


    ¡°If you say so¡­¡± She muttered. ¡°Though, maybe don¡¯t be so hard on him. I mean, he is bound to you till either of you break the contract. Which is unlikely.¡± Right.


    ¡°I understand, perhaps it¡¯s a bit too much to constantly tease him,¡± I nodded. Though the idea was still something that made me smile. ¡°A bit of teasing will not hurt though.¡±


    Ari sighed. ¡°In the end, the both of you are rather similar.¡± I smiled hearing Ari¡¯s mutter.


    Jer came out of the bathroom. His armor was now a mix of dark and nearly silvery-white. It was honestly rather nice, and polarizing, if that was even the right word for it. The contrast was somewhat charming. If one dyed the black parts in white, he would¡¯ve looked rather imposing to be honest.


    ¡°Oh, you look great. Like a total role-model!¡± I exclaimed, unable to hold back my jokes.


    Jer nodded without thinking. ¡°I do look awe-inspiring, as much as I did in my past I believe. Though I do believe I will be needing this.¡± Before I could stop him, he took the bed sheets and wrapped them across his entire body.


    Huh? It did look like a cloak. The bedsheets were white so he looked like some sort of nomad, but just enough wrapping and it looked just right. At least it¡¯d be hard to tell they were simply covers.


    To be honest, I was surprised. I didn¡¯t really think of how to cover Jer again. My plan was closer to¡­ Leave as soon as possible and reunite with Aizen. Yep! That was the entire plan! But now at least we wouldn¡¯t need to worry about detainments.


    ¡°Oh that works,¡± Ari said from behind.


    ¡°Alright, then let us leave.¡± I nodded at both of them.


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    ¡°You didn¡¯t tell me you would sneak someone in.¡± Ah what a pain. The inn-keeper was angry at me. I could somewhat see the disgust in his eyes too.


    I sighed. ¡°Mistress had an emergency, here, to compensate.¡± I reached into my coat and took the entire coin bag. At this point I simply didn¡¯t want unnecessary trouble. Ari shuffled awkwardly behind me, eliciting a sigh from me.


    As I placed the bag atop his hand, the heft seemed to surprise the innkeeper as his eyes widened. Taking a cursory peak into it, he nodded to himself and simply looked at us. His smile becoming wider by the minute.


    ¡°Oh my, how could I forget you people told me about a guest. This will certainly cover his expenses as well!¡± He exclaimed, his voice carrying a professional poise I had never heard from this man before. He seemed genuinely happy for us.


    The people around the street took glances at us as we dealt with the innkeeper, but thankfully I wasn¡¯t dressed in ¡°look at me¡± clothes. Just an edgy trench coat, a slightly lewd top and pants. It also helped that my hair wasn¡¯t white for now.


    The innkeeper nodded at us, essentially dismissing us. I turned to Ari.


    ¡°Well, let us go Miss, a long journey awaits.¡± Ari shuffled for a bit, her face flushing, before finally leaning closer to me. Did she want to whisper something to me? I leaned in, and¡­


    ¡°Why must you keep addressing me so formally?! There is barely no one paying attention!¡± Ah!


    Did I want to tell her? Of course! I smiled.


    ¡°I like how you blush about it.¡±


    Though my response didn¡¯t seem to trigger any response as Ari stayed silent and distanced herself from me.


    ¡°I see¡­ I appreciate it¡­¡± Her tone came out weird, but I shrugged. It was time to leave this place. The town that was north of the capital, ¡®Niyer¡¯.


    Without any further words, Dad, Ari and I left on our way to the gate we came from.


    Azrie


    Ah, cuddling! My favorite activity!

 (New Beginnings, Chpt. 87) Running into an unfamiliar familiar face

    Azrie


    New Beginnings Chpt. 87: Running into an unfamiliar familiar face


    Ari, Dad and I,walked through the cobbled streets of Niyer. I would get brief glances every now and then, though they weren¡¯t too harsh. The atmosphere was still grim, but thankfully it worked out for us. I mean, the last thing we wanted was to be blocked in some way.


    I made sure to stand straight ?¡ª my back as straight as a spear ?¡ª with a poise that was awe-inspiring! As a Ari¡¯s personal guard (even though I was roleplaying), it was my job to do things properly. Jer followed behind Ari silently, his aura much more intimidating than mine.


    I mean, I was just an edgy cat-kin versus a hulking nomad knight. Our little convoy looked very noble if I had to say. Certainly eye-catching, but one that made people question who was Ari, versus something else. Overall I had to rate the entire thing a ten-out-of-ten!


    As I nodded to myself in approval I saw our destination in the faraway distance. The familiar wooden gates of the southern gate, well I think it was south. I could see the rocky walls that had enchanted Jer when we had first arrived here.


    We continued walking, our group attracting occasional glances, but again; nothing harsh. Thankfully. Looks like our little plan of being a guard, and Ari being a noble worked wonders. As I walked forward with unimaginable poise.


    Chin up, make your face more arrogant, slight frown. Yes, slight frown! My aura seemed to become more and more intimidating for the people around us. We walked up to the stationed guard captain.


    His blue arm band caught my eyes. Was it the same person that welcomed us into town? I couldn¡¯t really remember. Well, it hardly mattered. I arrogantly walked up to him, my posture, my mannerisms, everything impeccable! Truly an arrogant rogue!


    ¡°Em¡­¡± He paused looking at me. His face doubtful. ¡°And you¡¯re? I don¡¯t recall letting your group into the town.¡±


    ¡°We are leaving now, no need to trouble yourself.¡± I nodded at him. His face seemed thoughtful as he muttered some things to himself.


    Jer and Ari quickly came up to me, as they looked at the guard, Ari seemed somewhat nervous though I didn¡¯t really know why. I suppose that a lot of things could go wrong now¡­


    The guard sighed and looked at our group. ¡°Normally, indeed we would let you go no questions asked. But you see, due to the little¡­ incident¡­ We need to do checks on everyone entering and leaving.¡±


    My face almost contorted hearing that. What now?


    ¡°I see¡­¡±


    I turned to look at Jer, only to see him shiver slightly. Why did he shiver? More importantly, what was the next thing we were supposed to do now? And then Ari shivered, her face becoming pale.


    ¡°Y-Yami¡­¡± She stuttered looking at my eyes. ¡°Did you just¡­ inspect me?¡± I tilted my head.


    ¡°No?¡± Huh? Before I could come up with something someone called from behind.


    ¡°Hey!¡± It was a rather unfamiliar femenine voice, sounding rather cheerful but there was something else in it too. I turned around, following the voice and paused.


    It was a girl, about as tall as me. She was smiling widely as she walked towards us with familiarity, her pixie cut hair was a crimson shade akin to blood, her eyes were a deep red color that shifted into an amber hue deep within. Huh?


    Her face was rather pretty, a button-like nose, puffy cheeks and cheery lips. Before I could say anything in confusion she was already next to us. She leaned in, and whispered to me.


    ¡°Hey, I¡¯ll help you out. What¡¯s your name?¡±


    My name? My disguise name? With slight uncertainty I whispered back.


    ¡°Kuro.¡±


    She seemed to pause for a second before nodding at me. I looked at her somewhat confused, and then my gaze landed on her clothes. She was wearing a type of leather scarf ?¡ª an apron wrapped around her neck ?¡ª she wore a sleeveless shirt that showed her figure, a belt around her hips with various things and skin-tight leggings.


    Her entire clothing was¡­ High quality? I couldn¡¯t quite put my finger on it, but she was weird. The girl turned to the guard captain and nodded at him.


    ¡°These people are my friends.¡± Just a one liner? Her hand flicked a tag out of her hand. Though, it appeared from thin air. The adventurer tag in her hand was a pearly white, a color I had never seen before. Huh?


    ¡°M-Mithril¡­¡± Ari stuttered. Wait¡­ A mithril ranked adventurer?! She rushed to my ear. ¡°Yami, we need to leave¡­ that person is¡­ dangerous!¡± She sounded doubtful, but I could hear the nervousness in her voice.


    Now mentioning it. My eyes narrowed looking at her back as she happily chatted with the guard. Ari asked if I had inspected her, Jer had shivered¡­ She inspected both of them? And¡­ me? I frowned. Nono, wait. I had a skill that could do the same, though it was¡­ rare.


    I turned to Ari. ¡°Let¡¯s see what she does for now, worst case scenario I¡¯ll send Jer and Fifi out, and if needed I¡¯ll allow mana draw.¡± I said with seriousness.


    Ari seemed at ease as she nodded at me, this time no longer as fidgety, though the doubtfulness in her eyes remained.


    The girl that had been talking to the guard turned to us with a smile.


    ¡°Alright, all clear, let us go.¡±


    ¡°Let us? You¡¯re coming too?¡± I asked with slight confusion. She just nodded.


    ¡°I have some business in Tortul after all.¡± The capital. I suppressed a sigh as I nodded at her. She smiled back and simply walked towards the wooden gate that was now being opened.


    Jer seemed uncertain but he had no choice as he walked, I took a second before following. Ari was now at the back of all of us. Since she was the weakest.


    No words were said as we walked past the gate, the guards looking at us with slight confusion, but the guard captain simply shook his head. Could a mithril tag be this useful? I asked myself, then shook my head. I didn¡¯t think it was so simple, considering the whole place was supposed to be in a lockdown.


    We walked without saying anything amongst each other, soon after close to an hour the town was no longer to be seen.


    ¡°So, I have to ask.¡± The mithril ranked adventurer asked. ¡°Ah, wait.¡± She paused and looked at us. ¡°It¡¯s impolite to not say my name.¡± I tilted my head seeing her smiling. ¡°I am Ash.¡±


    She nodded at us, I paused.


    ¡°I am Kuro.¡± I said, unable to buffer a different response.


    ¡°Right, you¡¯re Kuro, the girl is Ari, and the undead is Jermund.¡± I frowned. Ari tensed up and Jer pulled out a sword out of thin air. Ash, if that was her name, seemed to stiffen a bit.


    ¡°Ah wait! Wait!¡± She shook her hands in an effort to stop us. ¡°No need to kill each other.¡±


    ¡°What do you want?!¡± Ari asked in nervousness. I was getting ready to summon Fifi and give mana to Jer as I watched.


    ¡°Ah right!¡± She nodded to herself. ¡°At first I wanted nothing, but your group caught my attention so I decided to help out.¡± Huh? ¡°You see, watching an undead traveling along with people is already rare enough. But an undead with a supreme priest? Never seen before!¡±


    Supreme priest? I looked at Ari, her expression seemed rather hollow. She looked at me and wryly smiled.


    ¡°So basically I wanted to get to know how this happened. Though.¡± She paused and looked at me. ¡°You¡¯re the most curious one out of them all¡­ Kuro, eh?¡±


    I frowned. ¡°My family named me that after the Master Craftsman.¡±


    ¡°Right.¡± She nodded. ¡°But I cannot see your status at all! It¡¯s weird, you know? Though I sound all threatening but¡­¡± She sighed. ¡°I could barely kill that undead of yours, and you?¡± Her eyes looked at me. ¡°No chance.¡±


    ¡°Then why are you still coming with us?¡± Ari asked from behind. ¡°If you will most likely die at our hands for knowing too much, why?¡±


    Well I wasn¡¯t planning on killing her¡­ But Aizen? If she prodded too hard? Maybe.


    The girl; Ash, closed her eyes. And eventually nodded. ¡°I am just following my instincts, to be honest I¡¯ve run out of ideas.¡± Run out of ideas? ¡°You see, I am completely lost in this god-forsaken world¡­¡± She stomped, grinding her teeth.


    Eh? Before I could say anything she continued.


    ¡°I don¡¯t even know if any of you get it, but imagine waking up not knowing jack shit! Something that you only have vague memories of since it¡¯s been a long time since you¡¯ve been there. And to make it even worse, it¡¯s closer to dementia.¡± Ha?


    I looked at Ari, her expression was¡­ Odd? Baffled? Cringing? I couldn¡¯t even tell. Jer stood like  a monolith. Right. We hadn¡¯t even discussed player things with Ari or the like.


    ¡°I get it, but what I don¡¯t get is what part of running out of ideas includes, us.¡± I gestured around. At this point I had no clue where she was going with this though. She was a player. That I concluded. Or I thought anyway.


    Ash paused. ¡°Well considering my appraisal was blocked by you, my instincts tell me that I must find something closer to my goal with you people.¡± She nodded.


    ¡°Your goal?¡± I tilted my head. Ari seemed to be thinking about something, but I paid her no mind.


    Ash nodded. ¡°Indeed. I am looking for the Master Craftsman himself, since he probably is a player too! He must know about what happened to me, and the people before me.¡± She nodded again, and I froze.


    How was I supposed to break it to her? The fact that I was just as oblivious as literally anybody else.


    ¡°It probably won¡¯t get you anywhere.¡± Ari said, her voice sounding certain. ¡°Kuro, the Master Craftsman, disappeared like three-decades ago!¡±


    ¡°Three decades?¡± Ash paused. This was getting more complex by the minute. ¡°That can¡¯t be¡­ I¡¯ve been here for three-decades¡­¡± Eh, does this mean I can¡¯t get older?


    I mean she looked like a teenager! A very pretty one! But¡­


    ¡°Moreover, the disciple and family of Kuro, Dark Shadow, died in the fire at Niyer.¡± Ari added. Ha¡­


    ¡°Eh?¡± Ash paused, ¡°But I am the disciple. There was another one?¡±


    ¡°Ah?¡± I gasped. This person was my disciple?!


    Soon there was just silence. Ari unable to continue the conversation, Jer not knowing what to say, and I just didn¡¯t want to add anything either. In the end I just sighed.


    This is much more complicated than I want it to¡­ And the necromancer incident on top of everything? I didn¡¯t want to admit it but¡­ I wasn¡¯t looking forward to anything, whether it was the church, my disciple or even seeing what kind of things Aizen had done.


    I mean, I exploded an entire town. She couldn¡¯t have done worse, right?


    Azrie


    Controversial poll ahead.

 (New Beginnings, Chpt. 88) The priest that never was

    Azrie


    New Beginnings Chpt. 88: The priest that never was


    ?Aizen?


    I sat on a couch inside the cathedral, and two adventurers sat across from me. Next to me was Sivirud? ¡ª the priest that had picked me up ?¡ª and the Arch-priest whose name I couldn¡¯t recall. Fenri, Kuro¡¯s tamed pet,  sat on the floor minding his own business though he quietly listened like a good boy.


    Hmm, a dungeon? I hadn¡¯t been in one for a long time¡­ Wasn¡¯t I living in one? No?¡ª Maybe? Well, that wasn¡¯t the problem. The entire situation sounded unrealistic, they set off with an obsidian ranked adventurer, this adventurer proceeded to kill basically everything, and then suddenly turns out they were a necromancer?


    Troublesome. I sighed as I tapped my newfound sword on the ground. Making the adventurer with a great-sword slightly sweat. There was a mage along with them, though there were only two people for some reason. Shouldn¡¯t a party have more members? It wasn¡¯t my business, but odd still.


    ¡°So you¡¯re telling me, this person suddenly started leaking death energy?¡± I asked, massaging my temple in the process. It just didn¡¯t make sense. I mean. It¡¯s just weird.


    ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± The warrior hurriedly nodded. ¡°She was clearly wicked from the start! Who the hell has white hair!¡± Hearing this I frowned.


    ¡°I am rather fond of white hair myself,¡± I paused. ¡°And my hair is silver, so not much different.¡±


    The warrior seemed to bite his tongue. ¡°Yeah, but she also had different colored eyes!¡± Eh?


    ¡°Different colored eyes? Like, one red, one blue?¡± I asked ?¡ª I couldn¡¯t be too careful with this¡­ Fenri looked at me and then at the warrior.


    He nodded in pause. ¡°Yes, she was rather agile and wielded a dagger. She also was accompanied by a smaller girl with yellow hair. Though I do not know her involvement.¡±


    ¡°Aah! She seemed to be unaffected by the dungeon¡¯s miasma!¡± The mage hurriedly added.


    This was¡­ Fuck, I know I am the one normally getting into trouble but¡­ My face scrunched, and Fenri seemed to be having some sort of revelation as he wiggled a bit, but he didn¡¯t move past that. A necromancer? Sure, I had been head priest for maybe three-hours by now. But¡­


    Their faces¡­ The archpriest, and my so-called mentor¡¯s face were completely ashen. If I knew one thing from such a face is that. A catastrophe comes. I had seen it before hundreds of times, it was the face of a hardened warrior prepared to die!


    Normally I would¡¯ve found it laughable but¡­ I sighed. At least I am the one leading the expedition right now¡­ I sighed. That was probably the only edge I had.


    ¡°Head-priest, if I may speak.¡± The archpriest addressed me. I nodded at him carefully. ¡°We currently have a holy knight garrisoned at the capital. We can call him to aid in our quest? ?¡ª no, he will aid on our quest ?¡ª necromancers are too wicked, too evil¡­¡± He grit his teeth, before pausing. ¡°Aah, of course, do not take this the wrong way head-priest, this is just protocol¡­¡±


    Right, protocol. I sighed again. I didn¡¯t want to antagonize the church so soon. I mean, I had just gotten a position of power. Not some royal court mage. Oh the contract¡­ Well, the contract didn¡¯t matter; I wasn¡¯t some measly mage but a head-priest of the second most important city in the continent! From what I understood anyway.


    ¡°Antagonizing is troublesome¡­¡± I muttered. But perhaps, it wasn¡¯t completely gone. ¡°Archpriest do inform me. How much power do I have over our holy knight?¡±


    ¡°Power?¡± His face seemed to be one of being lost, his mouth was loose.


    ¡°Ah, I mean. What kind of orders would he listen to?¡± Surely I could stop him from trying to kill Kuro, and by extension saving me the trouble of¡­ incapacitating him.


    He pondered for a second. ¡°Well, you can certainly order him to stand by for negotiations, though as soon as the opposing party starts an attack then¡­¡± He paused. ¡°He will certainly act.¡±


    Right. ¡°I can work with that¡­¡± I nodded. The archpriest seemed to nod in satisfaction at my reply.


    ¡°I would like to accompany you, Aizen.¡± Sivirud said. ¡°I¡¯d like to see how you handle the issue at hand.¡±


    My mouth contorted a bit. ¡°Right¡­¡± I looked at the warrior deeply in his eyes.


    You¡¯ll regret this¡­ Seriously, what kind of wicked coincidence was this?! Now I had to play pretend with two people instead of just a single knight?! The warrior started to sweat under my gaze.


    ¡°So much trouble¡­¡± I sighed for the ninetieth time.


    ¡°Pardon?¡± The archpriest asked.


    ¡°Aah, no big deal. Do prepare the Holy Knight, we are setting off today, as soon as possible.¡± This whole thing made me uneasy. It all smelled like trouble. Everything.


    Sivirud nodded and left the room. The archpriest and I stayed along with the adventurer party, but I was less than happy. My brows scrunched like never before. Why did this have to happen¡­ I looked at the adventurer party. If these people didn¡¯t?¡ª


    ¡°You people leave before I kill both of you.¡± My frosty voice made them hurriedly get up.


    The archpriest looked at me weirdly, before deciding to sit across from me. ¡°Aizen, the head-priest, this is improper behaviour.¡±


    ¡°Drop the act.¡± I sighed. ¡°Archpriest, we both know my past. This was all for fun and games, though I have changed, I am not deeply religious.¡±


    He nodded. ¡°Salgrud.¡± Huh? ¡°My name is Salgrud. What seems to be the issue, Aizen?¡±


    I sighed. ¡°No harm in telling you this, but this necromancer of trouble sounds like my companion, but here is the thing. Her classes are [Summoner] and [Tamer].¡±


    ¡°Meaning that she isn¡¯t a necromancer.¡± Salgrud added.


    ¡°Pretty much, and now I have to figure out a way to avoid a crossfire between the two. I do not wish to antagonize the church after all.¡± I added.


    ¡°I understand, though I cannot offer advice. At the same time, the best I can do is give you a capture order and not a kill order. Meaning she must be captured instead and judged by the king himself.¡±


    Captured? I could probably convince Kuro of that. But judged? No, for now it was probably better to simply go along with being captured and deal with the aftermath after talking to her. We were a team!


    If I have to suffer then you have to suffer too! Suddenly I felt my mood slightly improving, though there was still the hurdle of dealing with the entire quest to begin with. Sigh, how can a dungeon quest get so out of hand? Actually, how do you manage?


    I paused trying to think of a way to fuck it up. But I had to admit it, Kuro really had outdone me in causing chaos. Pondering for a second about the dynamics of such a thing, I heard steps from the hallway.


    The door opened. It was Sivirud.


    ¡°Emergency Report. The town of the North, Niyer, has been set ablaze.¡± Eh, how does that concern me?


    ¡°And?¡± I pressured Sivirud to give me more. Surely I didn¡¯t suddenly have to deal with every little town that decided to set itself ablaze right? I mean, one or two towns in flames wasn¡¯t a big difference.


    Sivirud gulped. ¡°The detonator was a Legendary ranked armor forged by the necromancer.¡± All of the sudden, I felt my blood boil.


    ¡°How do you manage!¡± I spat. Fenri barked along with me.


    I got weird stares from both of the priests, whether it was my Sivirud or Salgrud, they were both taken aback, they also gave side glances at Fenri.


    I coughed. ¡°I understand, the matter will be dealt with accordingly.¡± Smile. Smile! Through my annoyance I managed to produce a small smile; enough to satisfy the both of them. ¡°So, from my understanding, town of the north was burnt down by the same necromancer due to her smithing skills.¡±


    ¡°... Yes.¡± Sivirud said after an awkward pause. ¡°We will need to capture her instead, according to witnesses her smithing talent is unfathomable. She must be captured for research.¡±


    Research? I frowned. ¡°What kind of research?¡± I placed my hand on the arm rest.


    Sivirud seemed to pause as his face lit up. ¡°If we could figure out her smithing skills then we could mass-produce Legendary rank armors! And therefore we could get closer to our god!¡± Closer to god? Closer? My hand tightened.  ¡°And even if we cannot research her, she can work for the church during the rest of her life!¡±


    Hearing those words, something broke. The entire arm rest broke under the immense pressure from my hand. Fenri began growling at Sivirud?¡ª no, at the priest.


    Rest of her life? Kuro? Perhaps¡­ It was time to make some enemies¡­


    ¡°Aizen! He doesn¡¯t mean anything!¡± The Archpriest suddenly pleaded. ¡°Right, Sivirud?!¡±


    ¡°Y-Yes!¡± His nervous voice echoed in my ears, giving me a slight pause. It¡¯s shrill ringing close to the one from the assassin that tried to kill Kuro.


    Blood, splatter, dismemberment. Ari¡­ I paused. Right¡­ I relaxed on my seat, Fenri got the queue and stopped growling, though he still looked at the other two people in the room with hostility.


    ¡°The necromancer won¡¯t be serving for the rest of her life. Final decision.¡± Even if they didn¡¯t mean it. Dare touch Kuro? Then you¡¯re throwing your life away.


    ¡°R-Right, of course!¡± Sivirud suddenly said on his knees.


    The archpriest ?¡ª Salgrud ?¡ª seemed to melt on his seat as he spoke.  ¡°It¡¯s worse than I remember, perhaps I¡¯ve gone senile.¡±


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± I added. ¡°Worry not, I will be doing my duties as priest at least for now, including the capturing of the necromancer.¡±


    ¡°A-And the after?¡± Sivirud asked with nervousness.


    ¡°After?¡± I smiled at him. ¡°Depends on how the king handles it. I do owe him a thing, so perhaps he could increase the debt. But for now you people should go do your arrangements. Do leave, I need to think.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll be going then.¡± Sivirud said.


    Though Salgrud gave me a side-glance and seemed to want to say something/ Though, in the end his figure slouched and he simply left along with my ex-mentor. I sat back on my seat.


    ¡°I¡¯ve done it, right Fenri?¡± I had lost my bearings for a bit, and in the end. I sighed. So much for being a priest for a day.


    ¡°Woof!¡± Fenri barked and jumped to my lap, laying flat on it. I smiled.


    Perhaps, the church wasn¡¯t so important. I looked at the ceiling. I just needed to enjoy today, that¡¯s all.


    Azrie

 (Announcement) 3 Years!

    But I do think everything will be alright, I''ve decided that this novel is going to be my side-project, meaning something I write to take stress from other novels, so it will be receiving updates often, but not on a super set schedule or anything. It''s something I want to write on the side, ideally, I''d like two ongoing novels aside from this one, each receiving 2-3 chapters a week, and this one receiving 1 chapter a week. Yes, I know not very kind.


    But, that''s in the future, for now let''s hope for more Aizen shenanigans, more Kuro screw ups, and more Ari... Well, she kind of serves to keep both of them from going off the railings, though not super successfully. A cheer, for all the upcoming hugs, and wholesome interactions! Fluff is life!


    Ah, did I mention it? My next novel is going to have a naive and cute mc! And no, it won''t be Leah with clickbait either!


    So why all this rambling?! Well, I get more views from posting this as a single chapter! To the free views!


    Though I kind of hoped this novel would have hundreds of chapters by this point in time, it''s somewhat close. I believe we are getting close to the technical 100th chapter if we include side stories. It wouldn''t be hundreds, but at least a hundred sounds good!


    Ah I was thinking about doing some revisions and throwing this on Amazon as a book, though unsure about it.

 (Chpt. 89) New Beginnings: Yearning & A mighty march

    Azrie


    New Beginnings Chpt. 89: Yearning & a mighty march


    I told myself to just enjoy today, but it turns out that¡­


    ¡°Head priest, I am sorry to inform you that your arrangements are¡­ hard to prepare.¡± The man spoke, his white tunic fluttering along with the shaking of his body. ¡°May I ask, why must you require something so grand? Could the necromancer be so dangerous?¡±


    I shook my head. ¡°It is to show my grandeur to the church, of course. Archpriest Salgrud, and Priest Sivirud seem to be unhappy with my current position.¡±


    The deacon in front of me paused. ¡°How could this be, I may have only briefly interacted with you. But in spite of your age, your ways are wise.¡± Ah, the classic bootlicking. ¡°If you could take me under your wing, I am sure it would change their views.¡±


    I sighed and shook my head. ¡°Not right now, perhaps another time do ask me.¡± Putting on an act was¡­ tiring¡­ The deacon seemed to close his mouth before nodding and walking out of my sight.


    I sighed as I stood alone. The news of a necromancer had shaken the entire place upside down, the one boisterous hall of the ceremony was completely devoid of life. I found a nearby bench that was on the sidelines of the grand hall and simply sat there. Fenri that had accompanied me  just came along.


    I looked at the dome and empty place and felt somewhat concerned. Was this all really worth it? I had no answer for my own question, while I didn¡¯t feel like I had overdone anything. Perhaps I had bitten more than I could chew. No, that wasn¡¯t it either. I could just walk away at any given moment, but as I thought.


    ¡°I just really dislike this kind of atmosphere¡­¡± I sighed.


    ¡°Woof!¡± Fenri gave me his paw somewhat enthusiastically, placing it atop my knee. I smiled somewhat meekly. Right, I am not alone anymore. I just chose to do things on my own and now I regret it.


    I sighed looking at my arm, I could still feel the injury, though it was healing quickly, it certainly was a mistake. I had gotten carried away, and it was a mistake. Killing¡­ Could I still do it?¡ª I shook my head. Doubtful.


    I had killed that thug maybe a day ago, it didn¡¯t wear heavily in my mind?¡ª even in the moment it felt more like an instinctual reaction rather than something that truly made me upset, but. Could I still kill? I¡­


    I paused. I could kill if it threatened me, or if it threatened Kuro, Ari or Fenri, however, anyone else? I found it hard to care, killing for the sake of killing even if it was in the name of self defense made me feel¡­ Disappointed. I couldn¡¯t tell if it was in myself or the act of doing it, but it wasn¡¯t a good feeling.


    ¡°Looks like I¡¯ve become rather soft over time¡­¡± I told Fenri in a wry smile, he seemed to pause and simply nodded at me before giving me a lick.


    I suppose he thought it was okay, but it was still kind of funny. An emotional support animal? Those were certainly a thing back then, perhaps Fenri was a summoned monster, but right now he was very much my emotional support animal. And¡­ I very much needed support¡­ a lot of it¡­


    ¡°Come,¡± I gestured to me. Making Fenri confused but he still tried climbing on the bench.


    Not letting him do much else, I spread my arms wide open and?¡ª Hug! He squirmed in surprise for a second, but eventually relaxed.


    ¡°Fenri, I feel¡­ lonely, and sad¡­¡± I whispered. It felt¡­ nice¡­ It felt too nice¡­ Why¡­ Why did it make me feel this way? Why¡­ Without realizing it, I began tearing up.


    ¡°Why did I have to accidentally kill him?¡± It didn¡¯t settle in until now. But I was no better than before, just a mindless monster. One that killed for enjoyment and took lives without a second thought.


    I didn¡¯t even think about killing him, it was just in the name of self defense, yet I killed him¡­ I took his life. Just a single swipe.


    ¡°It¡¯s all it took, a single arm motion, and he died¡­¡± I whimpered. Fenri wrapped his head around my neck, but I just¡­ cried.


    Was it really alright for me to come with Kuro and Ari?


    What if I ended up killing either of them by accident?


    I was a monster at the end of the day¡­


    I hugged the Lord of Wolves tighter, perhaps he judged me, perhaps he didn¡¯t. But all I needed right now was to be heard. I felt so alone without my family around¡­ Fenri was great company, but it just wasn¡¯t the same¡­ I regretted it.


    Perhaps if I tried to make friends in the past¡­


    If I didn¡¯t kill the heroes just because¡­


    ¡°In the end¡­ I am just a kid¡­¡± I felt tears endlessly stream out. Right now, I just wanted to¡­ disappear¡­


    No, that wasn¡¯t right¡­


    I just wanted¡­


    Contact¡­  with someone¡­


    And when I finally had someone, I went and left again, just because I thought it was funny. Just because I found it amusing I ended up killing someone¡­ It was¡­ unforgivable. I was dumb, reckless and stupid. Just a kid¡­


    ¡°Fuck¡­¡± I hissed at myself. ¡°I just want to be held¡­¡±


    I wanted to be told that everything was okay?¡ª I wanted to be told I was a good person?¡ª I wanted my hair to be ruffled and told it was okay?¡ª I didn¡¯t want to kill anymore?¡ª I wanted to have someone, be with someone?¡ª


    I didn¡¯t want to be alone again.


    I wanted to be with Kuro and Ari¡­


    I wanted to be with everyone.


    I missed my family¡­


    I shouldn¡¯t have left¡­


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    I kept hugging Fenri, he was warm and made noises in acknowledgment to my words. I didn¡¯t know how long had passed.


    But I felt more relaxed. I wiped the tears off my cheeks and smiled at Fenri, he looked at me the same way as always. It wasn¡¯t any different, though I could feel empathy coming from him.


    ¡°Thanks.¡± I murmured, feeling somewhat embarrassed. Fenri licked my face a bit, making me smile. ¡°Fenri, thank you for listening.¡±


    ¡°Woof.¡± I smiled. And closed my eyes before taking a deep breath. All of this was unnecessary. The only thing needed right now was. Sorting the issues with the church. That was all that mattered.


    ¡°After¡­¡± I paused, undecided on whether to say it to myself. ¡°I¡¯ll get all the hugs I want.¡± I nodded somewhat unenthusiastically to myself.


    Ugh, is this how Kuro feels about the Dark Shadow name? It¡¯s awful! I shook my head. Never again. But now, it was time to simply wait. I opened my eyes and looked forward.


    ¡°Looks like you¡¯ve changed more than you¡¯d like to admit.¡± I froze. ¡°Ah don¡¯t worry, I only got here just now.¡±


    My shoulders became somewhat relaxed hearing him. I couldn¡¯t let him off if he saw me crying! Though, I didn¡¯t want to kill him either. Problematic¡­ how does one deal with such problems? I sighed feeling weird about my current issues.


    ¡°I see¡­¡± I acknowledged. And then there was silence, I looked at the ceiling. Being normal is hard¡­  ¡°Sorry for¡­ threatening you.¡± I felt awkward. ¡°Though, my family comes first.¡±


    I heard no reply coming from Salgrud. I looked at him quizzingly only to see him deep in thought, but then he opened his eyes with a slight sparkle and smiled through his wrinkled face.


    ¡°I understand, family comes first.¡± He said empathetically. ¡°As for your request, it will be arranged. You will set off first thing in the morning. As for your position of Priest. I do not know how Sivirud will deal with it, but I¡¯ll vouch for you.¡±


    ¡°Thanks.¡± Though, to be honest, I hardly cared about the position anymore.


    ¡°Ah, this is your new outfit.¡± He pulled out neatly folded clothing from behind him. I could see golden embroidery running through it. ¡°As for your identification as a head priest, it¡¯s this.¡± A necklace was produced on his hand. It was golden  with delicate carvings all around.


    I got up, seeing him somewhat awkwardly standing there and quickly received my new clothes. Though the necklace called my attention, so I took a peek at it.


    [Tortul¡¯s Glorious Necklace ?¡ª Flawless ?¡ª A decorative necklace produced with the finest minerals of the region. Carries Tortul¡¯s will; proof of Head Priest.]


    Oh, how convenient. I thought. A completely decorative object of such rank? Rather impressive.


    I nodded at Salgrud, his smile deepening. ¡°You should get going Aizen?¡ª No, head-priest. All the arrangements will be ready by tomorrow, for now you should just rest.¡±


    ¡°I will.¡± My response just triggered a nod of acknowledgement and he simply left. I was alone again, well, figuratively. I had something to look forward to now, namely ?¡ª a fated reunion. And that, that was the best.


    I felt my cheeks get heated for a second. With a small smile I went back to my room along with Fenri. I got glances from the deacons in the vicinity or the apprentices, however, they all seemed to nod at me in respect at acknowledgement. I didn¡¯t carry the katana with me, however, I was considering it. It was rather long, I could use it as a walking stick and apprehend people with it.


    And that¡¯s when I realized.


    The katana is a great tool! It was simply amazing, it wouldn¡¯t kill anyone if I just smacked them lightly with it! Just instant apprehension of negative status effects! Wow, such a godly artifact!


    Sitting on the bed, I looked at the ceiling. It was rather late now, the ceremony had been done, then the things with the necromancer, and finally the resolution. It was probably better to sleep now, it was a great day tomorrow.


    No?¡ª it was going to be the best day. Well after I dealt with the process.


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    Clad in my new ornamented outfit, I looked like a god in front of everyone. Or well, goddess. Whatever it was, the golden linings running through my robe inspired awe on the deacons and priests gathered. My pointy hat was especially attractive. I looked saintly, my silver hair ethereal, my amber eyes full of knowledge! I was totally infatuated with the feeling.


    Perhaps I wanted to be a priest for longer. I couldn¡¯t get enough of the admiration in their eyes. It was simply perfect. Gathered at the back of the cathedral, every single member of the church was present forming a large circle around me, and my team.


    Two rows of deacons stood behind me, their chests puffed up in pride. I was regretting arranging this. I looked behind me. But not anymore. Yes, it was stupid and unecessary, but it was exhilirating! Besides, I had it all under-control.


    ¡°Head-priest. You are now to set off and capture the necromancer in the name of the church. The Church of Grades will thank you.¡± Salgrud ?¡ª the Archpriest ?¡ª said as he handed me a sort of collar along with a wink. What was this?


    [Suppression Collar ?¡ª Rare ?¡ª Effect: Degrade user¡¯s stats by 90%, effective against anyone under level 80]


    Oh. I smiled widely. Well this sure was useful. ¡°I will not disappoint.¡±


    Salgrud smiled back. ¡°Yes, to ensure this. The current stationed Holy Knight shall be accompanying you. Do welcome, Holy Knight Adams.¡± He gestured with his hand.


    The crowd of white making way for a hulking figure. Clad in white bespoke armor that shined with the sun, he walked towards me with a back that was straight as a lance. His helmet covered his entire face, the lack of slits or ways to see somewhat bewildered me, it was rather alien.


    The Holy Knight stood before me and knelt. ¡°It is my honor to serve the 69th Head Priest of The Capital of Tortul for this mission. I will be at your command.¡± I nodded with a small smile.


    Thankfully even though I could sense the power behind his armor and sword at his waist, he wasn¡¯t strong enough. I didn¡¯t want to try my hand at checking his status since everyone could just feel it. But, he wasn¡¯t stronger than me, let alone Fenri.


    Fenri stood next to me, while he wasn¡¯t very tall his white fur called the attention of the people.


    ¡°Get up, Holy Knight Adams, I will be requiring your full help in this mission.¡± I said, my voice completely regal. Adams¡¯ shoulders relaxed as he stood up next to me, his shadow enveloping me.


    ¡°You should head out now. We await your glorious return, Head-Priest.¡± Salgrud said with a stoic face.


    ¡°Of course!¡± I nodded and led my little group out of the cathedral and towards the north. The passerby on the street couldn¡¯t help but look at us as we walked. Adams walked alongside me.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think this is a bit extra?¡± He asked through his armor, his voice rather neutral.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s part of the fun.¡± I shrugged. ¡°The necromancer won¡¯t be hard to capture after all.¡±


    ¡°Why is that?¡± Adams asked in increased curiosity.


    ¡°I have a long feud with them, you see. So tricking them into submitting won¡¯t be hard, everyone just needs to stand aside. Including you Adams.¡± It was slightly tiring to talk eye to eye. Not literally, just speaking to people in general in a somewhat serious way.


    ¡°I understand, I will intervene if your life is in danger. It is my duty after all.¡± He said with a nod as we continued walking.


    Well, he was a knight. Though, I didn¡¯t really need him to come along.


    We stood before the northern gate, ready to leave. Kuro I¡¯ll be seeing you soon.

 (Chpt. 90) New Beginnings: Head-Priest of Tortul

    Azrie


    New Beginnings Chpt. 90: Head-Priest of Tortul


    ?Yami?


    We all looked at each other in silence. Ash ?¡ª scarlet haired disciple ?¡ª quickly started scratching her cheek. I stared at her in confusion. She was my world renowned disciple? Ari looked at her in confusion. I had to agree. Jer¡¯s silent gaze didn¡¯t help either.


    ¡°I guess that was an awkward thing to say¡­¡± She meekly said scratching her head. ¡°So the real disciple just died¡­¡± She sighed. ¡°That is¡­ unfortunate¡­¡± Her shoulders slumped.


    ¡°Very unfortunate.¡± Ari added.


    What was I even supposed to say? Well there is a question¡­ ¡°So, you expected another player to know what is going on? Isn¡¯t that very hopeful?¡± I asked, unable to keep my curiosity to myself.


    She looked at the ground. ¡°Well, I was hopeful. But it¡¯s just¡­ Well I didn¡¯t choose this.¡± She kept staring at the dirt as she crossed her arms closed to her body. ¡°It¡¯s good to be hopeful, but now? I am¡­¡± she paused in silence. ¡°Unsure.¡±


    She was shaking a bit. I could understand her, but I felt awkward. She finally sighed and looked at me, her deep red eyes looking profoundly at me.


    ¡°I¡­¡± She took a deep breath. ¡°Allow me to accompany you!¡±


    ¡°No!¡± Ari hurriedly exclaimed from behind. Jer again; said nothing.


    Ah, why me? I silently groaned and simply shook my head. I didn¡¯t want her around?¡ª I didn¡¯t know who she was?¡ª or if she had any other motives. Considering her strength, if she attempted anything on Ari, then, it¡¯d be troublesome.


    ¡°I can¡¯t allow that, you¡¯re too strong.¡±


    ¡°No, no wait! Look at my status!¡± She hurriedly pulled a stone from her bag. ¡°You can check it! My status!¡±


    I nodded and took a look at her to inspect her. She shuddered, before putting her stone away. Guess she realized it wasn¡¯t necessary.


    Name: Ashes


    Family: Riverwood


    Race: Forgotten Human


    LVL.120


    Title(s): [Herald of Ash] [Successor of Riverwood] [Phony] [Disciple of Legend] (22 others)...


    Karma: 412


    HP: 62981/622981(+ 30%)


    MP: 19173/19173(+ 30%)


    ST: 74391/24391(+ 30%)


    Luck: 300


    STR: 78230/78230(+ 30%)


    AGI: 94404/94404(+ 30%)


    CC/CD: 200%(+ 30%)


    Classes: [Ashen Smith. Lvl 40][Rogue. Lvl. 40][Night Shadow. Lvl. 40]


    Special Skills: [Eyes of Ash] [Translation] [Spatial Box] [???] [???]


    I titled my head reading her status. Her name is Ashes. It was well ?odd. But, I hadn¡¯t heard of  Ashen Smith or anything related to the ash theme of her status. She was a rogue, a smith and a shadow of the night; which meant she was incredibly fast and she would receive bonuses during the night. Though worth noting that, I had no clue what a forgotten human was. Perhaps it had to do with how she looked like a teenager in spite of her claim of thirty years.


    I sighed. She was like an assassin.


    ¡°I-I know it¡¯s a weird status, but I assume you¡¯ve got similar numbers right?¡± She asked in slight desperation. Her face looked uneasy. I didn¡¯t know what to say or how to say it. I just didn¡¯t trust her.


    It happened too fast. The dwarven smith of the capital had mentioned that my disciple wouldn¡¯t be returning for like a month yet we met her here. Moreover, she was a player, which added a whole new variable. What was I supposed to answer?


    ¡°I?¡ª¡± She paused looking at the ground, her fists shook. ¡°No, forget it. I¡¯ll just accompany you people to the capital.¡± Her fists relaxed and she half-heartedly smiled at me. ¡°Just a lot to think about, it¡¯s getting to me.¡±


    I tilted my head, what was this about? Though. She was sad. But¡­ I had to worry about things too. I sighed and nodded at her. I didn¡¯t want to say much more.


    ¡°Y-YAMI!¡± Ari suddenly called for me out of nowhere. ¡°We need to go, now!¡±


    ¡°Ha?!¡± I was supposed to be Kuro!


    ¡°A holy knight is coming!¡± Ari looked giddy as her gaze landed on the distant horizon. ¡°W-Wait I have an idea, the weirdo disciple already knows anyway!¡± Ari took off her disguise collar, undoing the transformation and returning to her usual self. ¡°Jer, try this!¡±


    She hurriedly gave my collar to Jer. ¡°Since the armor is technically a part of you then it should work. Just think of your current armor but in white?¡ª full white! Like a glorious knight of the sun!¡± Ari¡¯s desperate voice made us look at her weirdly but Jer did it anyway. Putting the collar somewhat awkwardly after quickly removing his helmet.


    Surprisingly or unsurprisingly his boney white head popped out, it was slightly surreal to look at it but it wasn¡¯t my business.


    Soon ?¡ª surprisingly ?¡ª Jer¡¯s armor actually shifted, slowly changing color and morphing in a few parts to have carvings. And before us, stood a white knight. Radiant and valiant. Ari scrunched her brows.


    ¡°It¡¯s almost there?¡­ well good enough I think¡­¡± She muttered. ¡°Now, put on your helmet!¡± Jer nodded and did, his helmet switching to fit his holiness. It was quite shocking how royal he looked under the scorching sun. The white from his armor refracted in a rainbow as if it was glass.


    ¡°Wow, that''s interesting.¡± Ash mentioned. Ari simply scoffed in response.


    ¡°Jer, now you¡¯re a holy knight of the Church of Grades. If anyone asks, you worship the holiness of items but never elaborate on it. You¡¯re an eccentric holy knight, you look down on those who have less than [Divine] tier equipment!¡± Ari instructed.


    Huh? Jer looked at me and I nodded in confirmation.


    ¡°I understand Ari.¡± Ari nodded in satisfaction.


    ¡°Ah the pathetic church.¡± Ash said in realization and then sighed. ¡°I was supposed to be at their capital but instead they changed the contents of the deal midway through.¡± She shook her head as she shared that information.


    ¡°Ah,¡± so that¡¯s why she was here. ¡°Unfortunate.¡±


    ¡°Very unfortunate.¡± She nodded in understanding. ¡°Ah?¡ª


    She was interrupted by the booming sound of a horn. Ari¡¯s face distorted in a mix of horror and uncomfortability. I hurriedly moved in front of her. If this would make her so uneasy, then¡­ It wasn¡¯t anything good.


    Ash entered a stance and pulled out a dagger that caught my attention. It was certainly better than any dagger I had seen since coming to this world. Jer stood in front and pulled out his sword. I tensed as I saw a convoy in the distance.


    There stood a girl walking with her eyes closed, her silver hair fluttered along with her highly adorned robes. She had a walking cane that was pale like bone, she smacked it against the ground and rocks occasionally. Her skin was rather pale, reminding me of someone. A wolf stood next to?¡ª Wait isn¡¯t that Fenri? I paused. That?¡ªthat¡¯s Aizen?!


    What the fuck had she been doing!? Now she was part of the church?! And what¡¯s with the cane?! Wait is that even a cane? Though at least it meant everything would go alright. I think.


    ¡°Jer, bring down your weapon, it¡¯s a companion.¡± I said in a low voice. He complied and put everything away. He stood in front of the entire group to receive them.


    Their convoy full of priests? Actually I didn¡¯t know what they were, but there were two files of people that would gawk at Aizen and Fenri. A third figure walked alongside them, his armor somewhat similar to Jer¡¯s, he stood straight with a regal demeanor; lacking any hurry whatsoever.


    Fenri couldn¡¯t stop looking at me and wagging his tail. Aizen looked at me in surprise before looking at Jer then back at me. Finally cracking a grin. I looked different though? She looked at Ari and smiled, before pausing at Ash and raising her brow. Aizen set her cane in front of her and placed both of her hands atop of it?¡ª it was a sword¡­


    ¡°Ehem,¡± Aizen cleared his throat. ¡°I can feel a necromancer among you, please do step forth. We are here for negotiations. To show my?¡ª¡± She paused. ¡°Sincerity, I will be going forward with my companion the Holy Wolf. Adams, our Holy Knight shall stand back.¡± As if on queue, the knight nodded and took a step backward.


    Aizen began walking towards me. Jer looked at me and I just nodded. He moved out of the way as she stood before me.


    ¡°Please, submit yourself to the Church of?¡ª submit yourself to the church.¡± She couldn¡¯t even remember what the church was called! ¡°Evil necromancer, your capture is imminent, let us not make it violent.¡±


    Eh¡­ I looked at Ari, and she looked unsure. Aizen nodded at both of us. She had a plan?


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know Kuro was a necromancer.¡± Ash said from the side. Aizen looked at her.


    ¡°And you are?¡± She raised her brow, she was definitely annoyed just judging from her judgemental expression. Her amber eyes seemed to pierce into her target.


    ¡°Ah, I am Ash, the disciple of the Master Craftsman, the church should know of me.¡± She nodded. Aizen paused and looked at me, I hurriedly shook my head.


    ¡°I see.¡± She nodded and pulled out a collar. ¡°Necromancer, do you want a duel to the death or?¡ª


    ¡°Actually we have her captured!¡± Ari added and gestured to Jer. ¡°We have a Holy Knight with us?¡ª he was just passing by and he helped us!¡± Jer nodded and began his acting as if on queue.


    ¡°Indeed. Necromancy is a serious offense to the Church of Grades.¡± Ehh¡­ So I was a prisoner now?


    ¡°Very well.¡± Aizen nodded. ¡°I will be using the collar to seal away your powers. Should any unnecessary moves occur, both Holy Knights shall attack ?¡ª it is my authority as the Head-Priest of Tortul.¡± Ha? Head-priest?! Ari looked at her in astonishment.


    She looked at me waiting for my words.


    ¡°I, Kuro¡­¡± The necromancer? ¡°Accept your terms.¡± Aizen nodded and threw me the collar.


    ¡°Put it on, and we will all be at ease.¡±


    I looked at it somewhat dubiously and inspected it.


    [Suppression Collar ?¡ª Rare ?¡ª Effect: Degrade user¡¯s stats by 90%, effective against anyone under level 80]


    Oh! I smiled and gratefully put it on. It did absolutely nothing. Well done Aizen! It was shameful to admit it, but I was the one that caused the chaos for once. As soon as it was on my neck the group behind Aizen seemed to relax their tension; well except for the Holy Knight, he behaved like a statue?¡ª actually Jer was pretty much the same.


    Before I could do anything, Fenri barked and pounded me. Eh, weren¡¯t we acting?! He started licking my face and stepping on me on pretty much everywhere, his paws digging into my stomach, chest and legs.


    ¡°Oh no! Holy Wolf! You mustn¡¯t cleanse the necromancer so fast,¡± Aizen chuckled. ¡°Little girl come with me.¡± She signaled at Ari, she made a weird face but nodded anyway. She also gestured at Jer to come, he meekly did so.


    ¡°You smell of contract; contracted with her?¡±  She whispered. I sighed seeing I could hear her.


    ¡°Yes, are you that dragon Ari spoke about?¡± Jer asked at her.


    ¡°Yep!¡± Aizen did a chuckle before addressing her group. ¡°Everything has gone smoothly! Thankfully by a miracle of Amatsukami there were two Holy Knights!¡± The people behind cheered and the Holy Knight that was with Aizen approached and got close to Jer.


    ¡°I¡¯d like to have a word with him.¡± He said emotionlessly at Jer. Err¡­ shit?


    ¡°Sure.¡± Aizen agreed. ¡°No problem, right Necromancer?¡± She asked as she lifted her sword and hit a random rock with the scabbard.


    ¡°None¡­¡± Why ask me?! And why do you keep using it to hit things?!

 (Chpt. 91) New Beginnings: Reunion of Silver Linings

    Azrie


    New Beginnings Chpt. 91: Reunion of Silver Linings


    Fenri licked me over and over again. Seriously, I knew he missed me ?¡ª probably ?¡ª but this was too much! Too, too much! What¡¯s with your paws in my stomach?! It hurts! And what about my face?!


    I squirmed on the ground under the relentless assault of Fenri, through the corners of my eyes I caught the glimpses of the Aizen followers; their faces were full of scorn among other emotions such as contempt and one of them even had anticipation. Well, I thought it was anticipation.


    Aizen looked at me, holding her sword in one hand and in the other she patted Ari. She just smiled sadistically at me. Hey! Jer and the Holy Knight walked away behind a bush though there was no speaking so far?¡ª or I thought so anyway. My hearing wasn¡¯t perfect. Though¡­


    Why could I hear people mutter now!? It was weird! I didn¡¯t want to hear people hush to each other about how disgusting my existence was to them, I didn¡¯t want to hear random gossip.


    ¡°Soo?¡ª¡± A voice entered my ears. It came from the bush. ¡°My name¡¯s Adams. Call me Adams?¡ª Nono, Adam?¡ª Adams? Whatever you like!¡± His hushed voice carried anticipation. What?


    There was silence. ¡°I see, you can call me Jermund.¡± Jer answered, his voice unwavering.


    There was another silence. ¡°Jermund? Like?¡ª Jermund The King of Zirconia? The Destroyer?! The hero!?¡± Adams spoke like a fangirl; except well¡­ hushed. ¡°Ah forgive me¡­ I just studied a lot of the history of Sorinea.¡±


    After yet another pause. ¡°Indeed, I am named after that, Jermund. Pleased to meet you Adams¡­¡± I could tell my summon was struggling to not die inside. Even though he was an undead, he probably wasn¡¯t doing too pretty.


    ¡°Right, forgive my¡­ overzealousness. My train of speculation was too¡­ striae, inchoate in a way. ¡± What? What the fuck did he just say? Stria?¡ª what?!


    ¡°I see, we should regroup, the necromancer might go rogue.¡± Jer didn¡¯t know what Adams had just said either!


    They walked past the bush, and soon entered my sight. Fenri had calmed down somewhat and just laid on top of me. I made eye-contact with Adams¡¯ visor but he didn¡¯t say anything and simply naturally looked away.


    Aizen thought for a second, lightly tapping a rock with her sword. Ugh. Well it was a katana, but still! How much can you bang it up?! She probably had been hitting it against every single pebble on the ground!


    She tapped for another second and opened her mouth. ¡°Necromancer apprehended!¡± She exclaimed at her group, who all awed at her display. Sigh. ¡°Let us go.¡±


    ¡°Ah, I am coming along.¡± Ash added talking to Aizen. ¡°I have some business to deal with Ms Necromancer Kuro.¡±


    Aizen gave her a weird look. ¡°Is that so? I require that you wait for the king to judge her in order to have business with¡­ Kuro the Necromancer.¡± Sigh.


    ¡°I cannot do that.¡± Ash shook her head. ¡°The Church of Grades owes me a lot.¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Aizen said with genuine confusion. ¡°I see, come along then.¡±


    Aizen nodded at Ash before coming to me and moving Fenri away. She grabbed my collar and made me stand up. She also had rope in her hands ?¡ª from her spacial storage? ?¡ª tightening it around my hands I couldn¡¯t move them anymore. Though, it was just rope.


    ¡°That hurts.¡± I whispered.


    ¡°Sorry.¡± She meekly apologized. Her face distorted ever so slightly before going back to calmness. ¡°Let us set towards Tortul. Where the Necromancer will be judged.¡± Aizen began walking away as she pulled the rope. Everyone gathered around from us, Adams and Jer at the front and back respectively.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t choose this.¡± I sighed. Who would¡¯ve thought so much trouble would happen from a Legendary Armor? No that wasn¡¯t it either. Most of the problem had to do with the dungeon. Nothing else, nothing more.


    I looked at the sky. So much for doing something differently. The Legendary Armor was a byproduct of doing whatever I liked along with Ari. To be honest we could¡¯ve probably fled with Aizen somewhere else, far away from the church. Hell, if Aizen wasn¡¯t with the church we could¡¯ve probably still tried to run away.


    Well assuming she was with us.


    Ash approached me and leaned into my ear. ¡°Even if you¡¯re a necromancer, I¡¯ll help. Take it as a thank you for the information about Dark Shadow.¡±


    Eh?


    However, thankfully she didn¡¯t try approaching Aizen or the like ?¡ª not even Jer or Adams. Though at the same time, she was on our side. But she did hear me call Aizen an ally so it was probably good. No confrontations with the dragon was for the best.


    As we walked, Aizen leisurely guided me with the rope, it wasn¡¯t even tight. The actual thing that hurt was being forcefully lifted up?¡ª it was so effortless too. Strong dragon! But to my surprise Aizen called Jer over and they began speaking. Between the two of them; again?¡ª I could just hear them?¡ª for some reason. Was it the new disguise or the ears?


    Haaa.


    ¡°Heard you¡¯re quite scary.¡± Jer offhandedly said.


    ¡°I am terrifying.¡± Aizen nodded with a grin. ¡°You¡¯re contracted to Kuro, eh? How is it?¡±


    Jer pondered as we walked before finally looking at Aizen.


    ¡°It¡¯s not bad, my life was spared due to me being a talking undead.¡± Aizen paused and looked at Jer in disbelief, making him pause as well. ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Well, it makes sense?¡ª undead skeletons don¡¯t talk.¡± Jer seemingly sighed hearing Aizen¡¯s comment.


    ¡°That¡¯s beside the point?¡ª I¡¯ve been treated rather nicely; even got an armor upgrade. Moreover, she likes smithing a lot; it¡¯s nice to see someone enjoy something.¡±


    Huh? That was certainly a new perspective.


    ¡°Yep, she is super nice. I missed her dearly.¡± Aizen paused, giving me a quick glance. ¡°Don¡¯t tell her though.¡±


    I heard everything! Jer nodded at Aizen in acknowledgement.


    ¡°Though she has a weird aura of death you know?¡± Jer added. Making Aizen pause.


    ¡°Did she take off the ring?¡±


    Jer shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know what ring you¡¯re talking about, she tried sharing mana with me and the aura was unleashed. Scaring away the adventurers in the dungeon.¡±


    Aizen nodded in realization. ¡°Let me guess, they called her necromancer.¡±


    ¡°Yep.¡± Jer nodded.


    ¡°That still doesn¡¯t explain the burning town. Actually?¡ª¡± She looked at me and began pulling the rope.


    Some people began looking at her, I mean she was about to speak to her prisoner. Who wouldn¡¯t want to watch! Well I wouldn¡¯t since I was the one that was going to be talked to. Wait, I got arrested. But did I even match the like testimonies?


    ¡°What are y¡¯all looking at?¡± Aizen hissed at the priests. ¡°Go forward! Damned deacons!¡± Ha?


    Everyone seemed to have a shiver creep up on them and they sped the pace. Deacons? So they weren¡¯t priests, just a bunch of deacons. Aizen looked at me and stood before me, but then turned to her sight behind her and looked at the Holy Knight?¡ª it was the other one?¡ª Adams.


    ¡°Do go away too, make sure the rescued girl is safe.¡±


    Adams nodded. ¡°Will do.¡± I guess they were talking about Ari. He walked away, and now we stood inbetween each other. Jer, Fenri, Aizen and I.


    ¡°And you, new summon. Stand behind me so they can¡¯t see what I am doing.¡± Aizen commanded again. ¡°Tell me what happened in the town Kuro,¡± She said with a sigh. ¡°It can¡¯t be worse than me, right?¡± Worse, he¡­


    I cleared my throat, slightly shaking. ¡°Well, we ran away from the necromancy thing. And somethings led to another, and somethings led to me smithing an armor. Long story short an elf tried to take it away from me, and I protested by summoning Fifi, and Jer making them fight each other.¡± I paused. ¡°Setting the entire square on fire, no casualties.¡±


    ¡°And?¡ª Why do you look like that?¡± Aizen asked me.


    ¡°Well¡­ I enchanted some things to change my appearance so we could leave town and go away unperturbed.¡± Buuuut. ¡°But we ran into you.¡±


    Aizen thought for a second, she began fiddling with the sword she carried, pulling it out of the scabbard and back in. Upon closer inspection the scabbard looked like it was made out of bone.


    ¡°Alright, so you look different from how the adventurers described you, different from when the incident of the town occurred. But at the same time I cannot go with my hands empty.¡± Aizen said in defeat. ¡°This sucks, how about we just walk away, like right now?¡±


    Eh. ¡°But what about the Holy Knight?¡±


    ¡°That?¡ª I guess we should just get back to the capital. I¡¯ll have your custody. Though¡­¡± Aizen looked at me and we made eye contact.


    She moved closer and looked at my face. Did I look funny. ¡°It¡¯s rather nostalgic.¡± She mentioned. ¡°Reminds me of old you. But you¡¯re still you nonetheless¡­¡± Her voice grew rather silent. ¡°I missed you.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I missed her too, but¡­


    Before I could react she hugged me deeply. ¡°I missed you so much. Ah, I shouldn¡¯t cry¡­¡± Her head was glued to my chest, all I could feel was the slight shaking of her body.


    Why? ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°Everything. I accidentally killed someone again¡­¡± Right¡­ ¡°I simply want to be told I am not bad, but I keep doing bad things¡­¡±


    I paused. ¡°You¡¯re not bad you know¡­ Well I don¡¯t think so¡­¡± I tried to hug her back, but my hands were tied. All I could do was nudge her with my body.


    ¡°But I killed. And Fenri had to save me.¡± Fenri did an acknowledgement woof, making me smile slightly.


    ¡°Well¡­¡± I paused. ¡°We should just stick together from now on. I also¡­ regret things on my side.¡± I sighed.


    ¡°Right¡­¡± Aizen hugged me tighter making me smile.


    A disastrous dragon, a reckless craftsman, and a supreme priest of the church gone rogue¡­ What a weird family. I chuckled. But I love the two. I found myself looking forward to our trip as we began walking again. I just couldn¡¯t wait to get this over with, and simply look forward.


    I had a family to go on adventures with!

 (Chpt. 92) New Beginnings: First meeting & Accommodations

    New Beginnings Chpt. 92: First meeting & Accommodations


    Our original lovely reunion had finished. Aizen finished hugging me and after a short period of grace she returned to her usual countenance; full of confidence with a small smile on her face and determined eyes. She commanded everyone to continue our march, before finally starting a chat with Ari.


    ¡°Hey Aizen,¡± Ari said as she fidgeted.


    ¡°Hmm? Is something wrong?¡± Aizen asked with some concern in her voice.


    ¡°Well, perhaps it¡¯s not the best time, but.¡± Ari pulled Aizen¡¯s shoulder and then leaned into her ear whispering something extremely quietly.


    ¡°Oh, that is certainly interesting.¡± Aizen smiled. ¡°But, you¡¯re still my sister at the end of the day, no?¡±


    Ari shifted awkwardly in her walk. She looked at me and I simply nodded.


    ¡°I am¡­¡± She meekly agreed before finally receiving a head pat from Aizen.


    I found myself sighing as I was pulled along by the rope. I wanted to participate! I wanted to be part of whatever was going on! It didn¡¯t sit well with me to simply walk along and hope for the best.


    ¡°You look dispirited.¡± Ash mentioned as she walked along with me. Right, there was my disciple. I suppose having small-talk with her wasn¡¯t bad either.


    ¡°Well I am, what was supposed to be a fun dungeon mission turned into¡­ this.¡± I gestured with my head, my hands uncomfortably shuffled.


    ¡°Hmhm, I felt pretty much the same.¡± Ash nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll share this with you since to be honest I don¡¯t really care anymore, lots on my mind now, you know?¡±


    I nodded.


    ¡°You see, I was initially on my way to the Holy Capital for business, they wanted some [Divine] tier equipment, while for us players, the [Divine] tier while hard to get, it¡¯s not unobtainable, for them however?¡± She looked at the gossiping church members. ¡°It¡¯s like an addiction.¡±


    ¡°An addiction?¡± This was the first time I was hearing of something like this.


    ¡°Well, they had some bandits attack my carriage since they wanted to save me. I know it sounds ridiculous, but the thing is they had always thought I was in the level seventy area. So they thought they could get some strong people to attack me and then?¡ª save me.¡±


    ¡°But?¡± I asked, seeing it coming.


    ¡°But,¡± Ash continued. ¡°You see, I ended up killing the attackers and our deal went bye-bye, however they couldn¡¯t really do much in the name of punishment.¡±


    ¡°Ah right, though.¡± I sighed. ¡°What makes you think I am a player?¡±


    Ash nodded. ¡°You were the first person to not look at me like a crazed-lady when ranting about waking up knowing nothing.¡±


    I probably should¡¯ve reacted much more strongly.


    ¡°Though,¡± she continued. ¡°What about your companion? The one in the robes? I want to see her status but well, I can¡¯t. Player too?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I shook my head. ¡°She¡¯s¡­¡± I paused. ¡°A capped being from the game, she knows about everything including players.¡±


    I didn¡¯t want to call Aizen an NPC or the like. I looked at her happily talking with Ari. She was just as alive as everyone else. She had feelings, she felt qualms about her past, and more importantly?¡ª cared about me.


    ¡°I understand. At first I didn¡¯t know anything, but memories slowly came back?¡ª and at first perhaps I saw them like an NPCs, but then stuff happened.¡± She let out a dry laugh. ¡°That¡¯s in the past though.¡±


    I nodded. ¡°Ashe?¡ª Ash, what is a forgotten human?¡±


    ¡°Hmm? Ah you were about to call me by my username, eh?¡± She smirked. ¡°A forgotten human are those of us who showed up here; though¡­¡± She looked at the distance. ¡°Players are surprisingly scarce, I¡¯ve heard of some, but met zero.¡±


    ¡°Huh? Zero?¡±


    Ash nodded. ¡°Most of us don¡¯t wish to make the church our enemy, and things that are much more terrifying exist. You know? I¡¯ve seen monsters close to the level-cap.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    She looked apathetically. ¡°The whole world has opened; areas never seen before exist now.¡±


    ¡°What you¡¯re saying is¡­¡±


    ¡°What I am saying is, the church isn¡¯t a big concern. At the same time every player is wary of another player coming after them for items. In the grand-scheme the stronger your items the safer you are.¡± She sighed. ¡°Though, based on visuals anyway, your party got the item area covered, so you won¡¯t be attacking me over that.¡±


    ¡°Attack, you?¡± I shook my head. ¡°I never treated this as a game again; at the same time I never wanted to go fight to the death or explore uncharted areas. That¡¯s in the past.¡± Though maybe if there were new types of metals.


    ¡°Right, you got this whole party including a little church girl.¡± She glanced at Ari. ¡°Never really tried the party thing,¡± Ash shook her head. ¡°Well, allow me to ask?¡ª what makes you a necromancer?¡±


    I snorted. ¡°I am not a necromancer. It¡¯s just my aura; the one that comes from the karma stat.¡±


    ¡°Oh, quite the devil you were in the game? Lots of slaughter?¡±


    I shook my head in defeat. ¡°I actually died and used an item, next thing I know I was here with negative five-hundred karma. What about you, yours is so high, are you an angel?¡± I asked in ridicule.


    Ash shook her head. ¡°I am a nice person, I just like helping. Perhaps a bit too much since the church tried to take advantage of me.¡± She sighed. ¡°Though I don¡¯t really know where to go now, I mean. You people have your own party, and well I don¡¯t really want to force myself to try to be liked by you or the others.¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± I pondered for a second. What would I do if I didn¡¯t have Ari or Aizen? After the initial slump I¡¯d explore and look for new metals with Fenri? I suppose that¡¯s what I¡¯d do.


    ¡°What about hobbies?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Hobbies? Like stuff to do in free-time? I guess I do?¡± She tilted her head.


    ¡°Yes, how about pursuing those? Perhaps you wanted to be an artisan, settling down and putting down a shop? I know it might sound lame, but¡­¡± I looked at the sky. ¡°I do think that¡¯s what I¡¯d probably do if I didn¡¯t have them here.¡±


    ¡°I see¡­¡± Ash answered in a whisper. ¡°Perhaps I might try that, though for now¡­¡± Hearing her pause, I looked at her only to see her smile at me. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to help you get out of this mess with the church.¡±


    I paused for a second. ¡°... Thanks¡­ But¡­ why?¡±


    ¡°I think that¡­¡± Ash pondered. ¡°This is probably the most meaningful conversation I¡¯ve had in a long while. So, it¡¯s part of the thank you that comes with it.¡±


    ¡°I see¡­¡± I slowly nodded in understanding.


    We continued walking in silence as Ash went away to try to talk to some of the deacons. Based on the things I heard while trying to ignore the conversations she was mostly asking about who Aizen was and why they followed her. Surprisingly they hoped she could tutor them on the ways of Amatsukami, which I had no idea who that was.


    They could maybe get an apprenticeship with her, or any other priest for that matter and basically rise through the ranks. Though I knew better, perhaps she was the head-priest of the capital, but I knew she wouldn¡¯t stick around for long?¡ª nor did I want her to.


    Soon I could see the distant walls of the capital in the distance. I could vaguely see a small crowd of white gathered in front of the gates?¡ª church members? I sighed in defeat, I was tired of being called a Necromancer. The deacons probably wanted to talk ill of me but didn¡¯t know how Aizen would react so they were refraining.


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    ¡°Well done, Head-priest.¡± An old-looking man praised Aizen with a gentle demeanor. He gave me a quick glance and¡­ nodded?


    I tilted my head. Every single other church member I had looked at would scowl or simply refuse to look at me. It was unanimous disgust.


    ¡°Thank you Arch-priest it is my honor,¡± Aizen smiled. Thankfully she had put the katana she carried away a while ago. ¡°I request to personally guide the Necromancer to her cell.¡±


    The Arch-priest regarded Aizen with a weird eye. ¡°Should the person she threatened to come with her come too so they get the satisfaction of revenge?¡±


    Aizen paused before hurriedly nodding. ¡°That would be perfect. She shall be served justice.¡±


    The Arch-priest nodded before calling someone over and whispering some things to me. I simply stood away from everyone along with Jer and Adams, the Holy Knight, Ash and Ari were still around as well.


    Some of the church members looked at me as my sentence had been seemingly decided. Contempt was more than obvious in their faces. If only they knew better¡­ I wasn¡¯t even a necromancer to begin with! Annoying!


    Soon we were escorted with a deacon along with the Holy Knights and some other normal knights, or I thought they were normal.


    ?¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    We stood in a luxurious room. I was still binded and had a collar on. What was going on?


    ¡°The Arch-priest said you requested for the Necromancer to be settled like an honored guest since she was going to die anyway, right?¡±


    ¡°Yep,¡± Aizen cheerfully nodded. The deacon gave us all a weird glance but said nothing as he left the room. Fenri jumped on the bed of the room.


    I looked at the lavish red carpet in shock. The wood framing of the bed smelled quite fancy, so did the desk, everything was shiny in some shape or form. Though I wasn¡¯t alone. Aizen was with me, we had gotten briefly separated Ari ended up going with Ash and Jer somewhere else. Would everything be fine?


    I didn¡¯t know if Ash was good with kids. At the same time I didn¡¯t want her to say something out of line to Ari. It made me quite nervous. Finally, Aizen closed the door and soon there was just simple silence.


    ¡°Ah finally¡­¡± Aizen gasped walking to the bed and laying on it. Soon Fenri jumped atop of Aizen and laid on top of her. ¡°Talking all respectfully is so tiring. It¡¯s so painfully obvious they want favors from me too¡­¡±


    ¡°Mind explaining to me¡­ What is happening?¡± I asked in utter confusion?¡ª keeping in mind I still had rope around my hands.


    ¡°Ah,¡± Aizen shuffled on the bed slightly. ¡°There is a festival to commemorate your capture. I requested you get to partake in it, or at least receive food. Mostly because you submitted yourself without hassle as Adams had testified.¡±


    ¡°But¡­ why?¡± It still didn¡¯t make sense. Shouldn¡¯t I be deep underground in a cell?


    ¡°Ah, the Arch-priest, Salgrud, is an old acquaintance of mine. So it¡¯s part of that as well. Overall the members of the church simply know that you¡¯re a necromancer but also a talented smith. Unfortunately your Dark Shadow identity has been compromised. So just give me your adventurer tags and we¡¯ll dispose of them properly.¡± Aizen rose and looked at me.


    ¡°So I am a dead person?¡± I asked in defeat.


    She bubbled up. ¡°Essentially yes!¡±


    Sigh, so much for a dungeon.

 (Chpt. 93) New Beginnings: Touring around & Shocking Plan

    New Beginnings Chpt. 93: Touring around & Shocking Plan


    I massaged my forehead, with both of my hands since they were still bound?¡ª Wait, they were still bound.


    ¡°Remove the rope,¡± I commanded in annoyance.


    ¡°Ah, forgot.¡± Aizen commented as she quickly removed it.


    A sigh escaped me. The situation was a bit too weird for my liking. I mean?¡ª I was hoping to get thrown into a dank cell, little to no sunlight! Not, well. Whatever this luxurious room was! Like, not even most of the inn-rooms we had been in were so luxurious, and they were so expensive too! Oh, right, we were totally broke too. But that wasn¡¯t the issue, the main issue was?¡ª


    ¡°So should I give you both identity tags?¡± I asked, pondering for a second. Kind of sucked to lose my adventurer career like that, but at the same time there wasn¡¯t much I could do.


    Aizen nodded. ¡°Unfortunately for you, yes.¡±


    I sighed as I pulled both tags out of my inventory. ¡°Here.¡± Aizen received them with a smile and put them away.


    ¡°Now you¡¯re officially dead, how do you feel?¡±


    I sighed. ¡°I suppose that I am indeed dead. Your long lost master is dead, how do you feel?¡±


    Aizen scoffed. ¡°Sad of course,¡± she paused. ¡°Ah, master! I¡¯ve missed you so much!¡± She hugged the air. ¡°Glad that you¡¯re back as a ghost to be with me!¡±


    I shivered. ¡°Stop, stop!¡± I couldn¡¯t tell Aizen that her cutesy actions made me cringe. ¡°I am just technically dead, but I am here regardless.¡±


    Aizen paused and looked at me. ¡°Master!¡± She jumped towards my arms and tackled me towards the ground.


    ¡°Stop pretending!¡±


    ¡°Tsk, just take the hint and be hugged.¡± The dragon clicked her tongue and continued hugging me. Sigh. Hugs weren¡¯t bad.


    I was under her embrace for a few seconds before she got bored and got up. We just stared at the room and the accommodations. Not really knowing what to do. Right, wasn¡¯t there going to be a festival?


    ¡°So when is this festival of yours happening?¡± I asked after recalling it.


    ¡°Oh,¡± Aizen pondered for a second. ¡°In a few hours I suppose.¡± Followed up by a shrug.


    ¡°So what now? I can¡¯t even explore or look at things, since well.¡± I pulled on my collar.


    Aizen saw my plight and pondered for a few seconds, her expression changing as her thoughts continued. It couldn¡¯t be that hard to think of something? Actually it was. It was hard to come up with something that did not damage our surroundings. Finally she smiled.


    ¡°How about we just tour the church? I haven¡¯t seen everything here either.¡±


    That?¡ª didn¡¯t sound so bad actually. Touring the church?


    ¡°Sure!¡± I quickly nodded. Fenri got off from the bed and followed after us when we exited the room.


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    First there was a grand hall that reminded me of a colosseum. There were fragments of what seemed to be a mix of quartz and marble in the middle of the room, some provisional metal fencing to keep people away from it. It was as if a statue from a museum had been shattered and people hadn¡¯t cleaned.


    As we arrived at the room, there was a group of deacons ?¡ª or what I thought there deacons ?¡ª that rushed in bubbly excitement too Aizen. However, they quickly stopped seeing me standing next to her, I didn¡¯t have a rope either so it must¡¯ve scared them off since they just chattered among themselves before they left.


    The conversations included things such as.


    Right, I had heard the priest of blood and thunder had captured a necromancer.


    Why is a girl of that age a necromancer?!


    Wow, the head-priest is so pretty!


    However, they quickly left. Still?¡ª Priest of blood and thunder? Priest of thunder? I turned to look at Aizen who seemed surprised that there were even people here.


    ¡°What happened here?¡± I asked in confusion.


    ¡°Ah,¡± Aizen gasped as she pulled out the bone katana. ¡°You see, Kuro, the katana was a relic from a former player. And I, as the chosen one, extracted it from the statue. I bled a lot, and there was also thunder.¡±


    Aizen nodded to herself in pride. But?¡ª ignoring the katana. If she extracted it from the statue wouldn¡¯t it have been forceful? I mean, no statue shatters in on itself simply after removing a relic from it. At least I didn¡¯t think statues worked like that.


    ¡°So you broke the statue?¡±


    Aizen scoffed. ¡°What makes you think that?¡±


    I rolled my eyes. I could just see her expression of guilt but it also had some pride to it. She had definitely broken the statue. I guess things weren¡¯t super great on her side either? Well she had said they weren¡¯t, but I thought it was slightly smoother. Though it still didn¡¯t beat, causing mass panic in an entire town.


    ¡°Well, it''s nice to see you¡¯ve been crowned as The Priest of Thunder and Blood.¡±


    ¡°R-Right.¡± Aizen stuttered. Oh, she found the name somewhat embarrassing? ¡°Hearing you say it is weird.¡±


    ¡°Well no worries, what¡¯s next?¡±


    Aizen pondered for a few seconds, thinking really hard about things. Did she not know other places to visit?


    ¡°We could pass by the library I suppose.¡±


    ¡°The library?¡± Was this church that uninteresting?


    Aizen looked away. ¡°Yes, the library. Have a problem?¡± She wasn¡¯t even looking at me.


    ¡°No. Let''s go to the library.¡±


    Aizen fidgeted as she pulled my hand. I guess she was just as uneasy as I was. Well, I guess it was time to go see the library.


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    Soon we stood before an imposing pair of wooden doors. It was about hmm?¡ª almost twice as tall as me I¡¯d say. However, the dragon simply walked up to it and pressed them, with a mighty creak the doors gave in. Well even though the doors were finally crafted?¡ª chiseled with various patterns and the like, they were undoubtedly very worn out; some of the carvings had begun to fade.


    It was quite unfortunate, sadly.


    Soon we entered the library, bookshelves that towered over the entire room reaching up to the roof, books were ever-present all around, whether it was the towering bookshelves that felt like pillars or the walls themselves, some desks loitered about to give reading space, and there was even a second floor.


    Needless to say, it was quite an impressive library.


    ¡°Head-priest?¡± I heard a surprised call from behind us as we walked. In the room at the corner sat a man with white robes, he was old. Well what priest wasn¡¯t old. Still, his face showed nothing but shock. Were they acquainted?


    Aizen gasped in confusion. ¡°Oh, Sivirud.¡±


    ¡°Were you looking for me?¡± The priest named Sivirud asked in confusion, and there was uncertainty in his voice as well. Then his eyes landed on me. ¡°You¡¯ve also brought The Necromancer.¡±


    I nodded. ¡°Hello, yes. I am the Necromancer. Nice to meet you.¡±


    I had to roleplay at least a bit, no? He looked at me, bewilderment written across his face, he simply gave me a nod and turned back to Aizen.


    ¡°Were you looking for me?¡±


    Aizen shook her head after a brief moment of pause. ¡°I was showing her around since it was one of her final wishes.¡±


    I guess I was a dying person now.  I simply nodded in agreement. Sivirud continued having the same type of face. Did these two have some sort of history? Well it wasn¡¯t my business. So I simply strutted right in, the priest looked at me in horror but I pretended to not notice as I went to the library.


    Since I was dying, and it was my dying wish. Might as well stalk some of the books. Or well, browse them.


    I went to a random bookshelf and began reading the spines of the books.


    Darkness in the light, vol, 1, 2, 3¡­ 9?¡ª Brilliant Life, Records of The Unbroken. Nothing really catched my attention.


    I heard Aizen and the priest talk. I had already forgotten his name. Talk about memory.


    ¡°May I know why you are intruding in my room.¡± He sounded angry.


    ¡°Well, I forgot it was your room. I doubt she cares about the books that much, so we can get going now.¡± Aizen answered devoid of any emotions.


    ¡°Hmm, I wish to talk to this Necromancer in private.¡± Aizen paused but simply did a weird scoff in answer and left the room.


    In the end, all I could do was pretend to browse the books as the footsteps drew closer.


    ¡°Necromancer,¡± he solemnly called my attention. I pretended to be surprised.


    ¡°Ah, yes? Is something the issue?¡± My ears twitched.


    ¡°Are you interested in the faith of grades?¡± He asked, his voice soft as ever.


    I pondered for a second. Did I even want to bother with this? The answer was, a resounding no.


    ¡°I am simply interested in the church as a whole rather than its faith.¡± I answered solemnly.


    ¡°Hmm.¡± He nodded. ¡°Do you want to see around the church instead? I could show you around.¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ The Pri?¡ª Head priest is already doing that.¡±


    ¡°That is unfortunate.¡± He nodded to himself and left.


    I gave him a weird look and left the library, reuniting with Aizen. She simply waited with a weird look on her face. To be honest if I was going to have more one to one interactions I didn¡¯t want to be here.


    ¡°Let¡¯s just go with the others, and then we can go to the festival or whatever.¡±


    Aizen nodded.


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    Soon I was in a room with Ari and Ash. Aizen and Fenri included.


    ¡°So you decided to tour around and leave me with the person I barely know?¡± Ari argued with Aizen.


    Aizen simply shrugged. ¡°I kind of forgot. Besides, you didn¡¯t raise concerns when you were getting separated from me.¡±


    ¡°That is?¡ª¡± Ari huffed. ¡°I thought you¡¯d come to get me as soon as possible. I barely know this person.¡± She pointed at Ash. Who in turn simply sighed.


    ¡°I don¡¯t bite if that¡¯s what worries you. Just because I saw your status doesn¡¯t really make me care.¡± She paused. ¡°More importantly. I¡¯ve thought about how we can get Kuro out of this disaster!¡±


    We all turned to look at her in bewilderment as she spun, her red hair looking extremely bright.


    ¡°You said the king shall judge, right?¡± She asked Aizen.


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s the plan I suppose. Though we can probably just leave now.¡± Aizen added.


    Ash nodded along. ¡°Yes, perhaps we could just leave and be declared as fugitives?¡ª well not me since they can¡¯t do that to me. But you people.¡±


    ¡°Ah right, you were the fake disciple.¡± Aizen agreed.


    ¡°Tsk, that¡¯s besides the point.¡± She clicked her tongue. ¡°No one likes the king. Sooo¡­¡± She trailed into a smile. ¡°How about a rebellion?¡±


    We all paused. Wasn¡¯t she supposed to be like?¡ª not involved too much? She¡¯d literally just board a sinking ship.