Hurtful Love

Summary: Playing with love is fun. But that only applies to the player. Hans/Adlet, Hans centric

Disclaimer: I don't own Rokka no Yuusha. Many quotes in this story was directly copied from NanoDesu LN translation.

AN: According to the novel, so far, Hans' age is unknown, but he seemed to be younger than Mora but older than Adlet.

Because it's a new anime and not many had read the light novel, I will wait to see if people like my characterization of Hans before I continue.

Assassins' lives were usually short-lived; thus, they often grasp their first opportunity of love. Age and sex doesn't matter. It went the the same for me. Being an infamous assassin (who's nicer than the others, in my opinion), I was often on the lookout for suitable lovers who wouldn't mind dating someone who might die the next day. However, most people, obviously, doesn't like that; therefore, I had remained single throughout puberty. A truly sad thing.

When I was chosen as one of the Six Flowers, I was determined to find a lover among them. After all, we were chosen to risk our lives to fight the Majin, which means the chances of our living a safe, peaceful life was low. I believed that they have the same thoughts as I do. Since they could die any time, they wouldn't let go of a chance to experience love (that is, if they haven't already).

When I first met them, I thought they were a strange bunch. A bunny princess, a loli who pukes before battling, a giant who's sixteen of age, the Saint of Mountains (there's nothing weird about her though), a Six Flower killer, and a red-haired nobody. What an unique combination.

"Meowy, there are a lot of beautiful women in this group of Six Flowers. I suddenly feel very motivated," I had said. Four younger than I was, one older. Not really my cup of tea, but I could manage.

Imagine my surprise when the nobody opened her mouth to speak...in a man's voice. That was when I finally began scrutinizing him carefully. Long red messy hair trailing down his back, with lose strands framing his pale face, lose clothes and armors fitted perfectly on his small frame, clear orange eyes gleaming with determination, and a confident grin when he proclaimed to be the "strongest man on earth." I had to admit; out of all of them, Adlet Maia interested me the most.

Then, the problem of an impostor came into hand. Evidence all pointed at Adlet for being the Seventh. I was then forced to gave up on creating a good relationship with him. After all, defeating the Majin was my number one priority. I would not betray humanity and ally myself with an enemy.

Before Adlet could escape with Fremy as a hostage, I suppressed all my feelings about him and threw a sword at his back. I wished I had killed him just then, so I wouldn't have to think of him again. But unfortunately, the combination of his flash and smoke pellets made my throw miss his vitals. He had escaped into the dark forest.

We then quickly ran after him in desperate search, but night had fallen and we could hardly see in the dark. Everyone else had gone back, but I continued with my search.

"Hans! That's far enough! The sun has gone down." Mora said to me.

I replied saying how I was worried about Fremy's safety.

After Mora showed me evidence that the hostage was still alive, I reluctantly returned back with her.

I wished the night hadn't fallen so quickly, so I could find Adlet and kill him. That way, I could stop thinking about him and focus on killing the Majin and find someone else to love. With him alive, I couldn't concentrate on anything else.

When I woke up the next day, Fremy had surprisingly returned unscathed. I was suspicious immediately. Why would Adlet release an useful hostage when he could have used her to ensure his safety? Especially when he's against five of us inside a barrier, with his weapons and belongings in our possession.

"Meohehe, I now feel a bit uneasy. Is it alright to think of her as our companion?" I asked in my usual carefree manner. Fremy's story may be sad, but that didn't stop me from doubting her.

Mora said I was speaking nonsense, making me even more alarmed. I had underestimated Fremy's power of story-telling. If Mora could be convinced, soon everyone else would be.

"Did you really fight Adlet?" I quickly questioned my suspicion. "The sword I threw successfully went deep into his back right?" That's another hole in her story. How could he fight when I had severely injured him?

"It missed his vitals. Even you are not as strong as you claim." Fremy stated.

I pointed out several reasons why she would possibly lie about fighting him, in which she replied with a mere "you're incredibly irritating."

It wasn't until Mora said "Hans, shut up for a bit," when I stopped vocalizing my thoughts.

I decided to keep my suspicion to myself for the time being.

Fremy continued to badmouth Adlet, "He had tried to get on my good side, feigned concern, and tried to gain my trust. But I now understand why."

I couldn't control my mouth after hearing that, "Meowy, you're a dreadful woman. And Adlet's a guy whose troubles didn't pay off," in which Fremy returned with a glare.

After that talk, I had to question myself. Was Adlet really the Seventh? Could he actually be innocent?

After some arguments, we decided to split into pairs, with Fremy and Mora, Nashetania and Goldof searching for Adlet, Chamo and I remaining at the temple to confront him if he shows up.

"Meow? My motivation is cut in half if I'm not with a pretty girl. Can I switch with Goldof?" If I'm correct, Adlet would return to the temple to gather his belongings, and search for evidence to prove his innocence (if he truly is innocent). Chamo's behavior so far led me to believe that she wouldn't listen to Adlet's reasoning and would kill him on sight. Nashetania appeared to be a much more reasonable character. Plus, she had been with Adlet the longest so she should suspect him the least. Thus, I requested a switch. But perhaps due to the way I phrased that, they all ignored my complaints.

Fortunately, Chamo liked neither waiting nor pursuing, so she suggested to play around, leaving us to do the job.

Of course, I agreed. "It's alright. I will be enough for a guy like him." With Chamo away playing, I'll be able to confront Adlet alone and ask a few questions I had in mind.

When everyone was about to leave, I called out to Fremy, "Are you really able to fight the fiend?" After all, she was raised by them. I was afraid she wouldn't be able to deliver the final blow, or worse, switch sides at the last moment. That would be a major weakness of the Six Flowers.

She insisted that that wouldn't be a problem, so I let her go, for now.

After walking around the temple for a while, I jumped into a tree and hid there, keenly observing movements of my surroundings, hoping I could find Adlet before Chamo or anyone else does.

It didn't take long for my sharp eye sight to catch a suspicious rustle in a tree. As expected, a mop of red hair poked out the next second. The figure quickly darted towards the temple and jumped onto the roof.

I smiled to myself when I saw him. Feeling relieved that I had found him before anyone else did, I began formulating my plan.

With a murderous intent, I threw a sword at him. He dodged reflexively, and I quickly jumped onto the roof and grabbed my sword before he could recover from the shock of my sudden attack.

"Yo, I thought you'd come, Adlet." I could barely contain my excitement as I twirled my weapons on my wrist. This strange movement could calm me down.

"So it's you, Hans." Adlet said with a guarded look.

"I previously thought your cowardly skills were your only weapons. But you're more capable than I thought." I said as I observed his reactions. If he truly was the Seventh, or if he had been hiding his true skills, I would be able to tell from his expressions. Even the quick twitch of an eyebrow, or the slight narrowing of an eye could mean something.

"So we've run into one another huh. This is a problem. I guess it looks like we'll have no choice but to kill one another." Adlet said. I almost burst out laughing seeing how it's clearly a feint. Adlet Maia would not kill his companions if he wanted to prove his innocence; in fact, that'd be the least thing he'd want to do.

"It's better if you have the desire to kill me. If you don't then this will be settled in an instant," I told him and the fight began.

Swooping down upon him, I made a move to slash my sword, but the act was to cover my true motive. Stopping myself before my attack could hit, I caught an opening and kicked a smoke bomb out of his hand.

"Meow. The same moves won't work again and again."

I continued to attack him skillfully, hitting Adlet with nearly every blow, while he failed to make even a scratch on me. I hadn't even used half of my power, yet he's already on the verge of losing. This further proved that his "strongest man on earth" was self-proclaimed.

After a long time, finally, one of his kicks managed to bypass my defense and got me in the gut. Using that moment, he dropped a smoke pellet.

It didn't work, however, for I could still see his outline through the smoke. I slashed at him with my feet holding the sword, leaving my hands free to grab his feet and pull him onto the ground. Standing above Adlet, I pressed my sword against his neck.

"Shiit..." He groaned.

"Meow. That's unfortunate Adlet," I said with a smile. Now was the chance to get answers to my questions. "It wasn't a bad plan. I wouldn't have been able to easily come up with the idea of becoming an impostor Hero of the Six Flowers. And if I weren't here maybe you would have been able to deceive everyone a bit more successfully."

"Hans, I'm..."

"Not the impostor... Is that what you intend to say meow? That won't work." I grinned widely. Just saying that won't work; I need convincing evidence. "I was shocked when you took a hostage. You're quicker on your feet than I had thought." Since he had been acting like a complete idiot, I totally hadn't expected him to make use of his environment that well.

"So then, spit it out for me. Who has been giving you orders? What kind of reason could there be for you to betray humanity and ally with The Majin? If you speak truthfully I won't do anything bad to you."

"...I can't say since I'm not the impostor."

"Don't hold back. I, meow, understand. Do you have any sob stories to explain yourself? You need medicine for your sick mother? Your pretty lover was taken hostage?"

"I have no family. Nor do I have a lover. I've said it over and over, but I'm not the impostor."

Aww, that's sad, if that's true. I knew from experience how hurtful not having a lover during puberty was. If he was innocent, perhaps we could try...and make something happen between us?

"...Meow, well there is no one to feel sad about you dying." It hurt me to say, but if he was an enemy, I honestly wouldn't care about his feelings.

Adding pressure onto the sword, I moved to slash his neck. But at that moment, Adlet pulled a cord extending down his sleeves and a yellow smoke burst out of one of his pouches.

"Gumeow!" I slapped my hands over my burning eyes. Apparently, the yellow smoke was a tear gas. But I was happy to see that Adlet wasn't any better, for he had ran straight into a salt pillar.

"Meomeomeow! What a persistent brat you are."

"I'm going to be persistent until I get away."

We continued to fight. Even with my eyes hurting, I still gained the upper hand. Soon his entire body was covered with injuries, while I'm almost unscathed, but I still felt a little fatigue.

Taking the chance of my pause in my attacks, Adlet moved his hands to his belts. I stilled, ready for the effects of another secret weapon. But instead of grabbing a smoke or flash pellet, Adlet took off all his belts and threw them away.

I frowned.

"Meow, what are you doing?"

"...I don't have my secret weapons anymore. I'll beat you with my strength alone." He said with a serious look.

"...You're playing some kind of trick."

"That's right." He readily admitted.

"...meow," I groaned. How am I supposed to reply to that? One just do not warn an opponent before using a trick. That's breaking the norms.

"What's the matter Hans? Scared?" Adlet asked with a taunting grin. Do I have to remind him who's at an advantage here?

"Yeah I'm scared. There's no point in deceiving you."

"You're honest," he looked surprised. Do I look like a liar to him? Or was he simply judging by my profession?

"I kill people, but I don't lie. I can't lie," I said as I observed him carefully, wondering if he had hidden something in his clothes or mouth, or if something lying on the ground around him could be used as a weapon. With my attention elsewhere, I failed to notice his sole weapon-his sword-until he threw its blade at me, knocking off my scabbard.

"Hans! Someone like you can understand what just happened right? I purposefully missed with that attack," Adlet said as he threw away his own scabbard, making him appear to be completely unarmed.

"...why did you miss?"

"A guy like you should understand that too." Was this supposed to be a compliment?

I scrutinized Adlet carefully. He doesn't seem to have notions other than to...

Then he took off his armor...

Then clothes...

Leaving himself naked in front of me...

His opponent...

In the middle of a fight...

Alone...

...

I could not think.

I could not move.

I could not stop devouring the sight of his skinny, pale body, sweaty chest and torso, bruises, cuts and scrapes with bloody smudges around them that were made by me, vivid red hair pooling down his back, creating a clear contrast between the two distinct colors...

...along with his slightly reddened cheeks and sharp intakes of breath, the result of my overpowering him...

...

It took all my years of control to maintain my poker face and stop the blood from flowing into my head.

"Think Hans. If I were the seventh then what reason would I have to miss with that attack? That last attack was the only chance I had to be able to kill you. What reason would there be for letting that chance slip before one's eyes?"

The idiot hadn't seemed to notice how awkward this situation was...

"...M-meow," I managed to produce a sound through tight lips.

Adlet hadn't noticed my discomfort for he continued to try convincing me. I could only try my best to refrain from making any embarrassing sounds.

"I am genuine. And it's because of that that I must not kill a companion. That is my answer, the reason that my attack before missed. Understand Hans!"

I gripped my sword tightly, looking troubled.

Adlet was waiting for my response impatiently. I frantically turned my gaze away from his body and locked it with the ground. Securing the previous sight safely under the cortex to savor slowly later on, when I'm alone, I forced my mind to focus onto the current situation.

Take a deep breath...let it out...

My hands began subconsciously twirling my weapons on my wrists as I tried to cool down my brain.

What Adlet had said made sense, but mere words weren't promising enough. I need visible evidence.

"Meow. I'm convinced. You are a genuine Flower."

Adlet visibly relaxed.

"It's a good thing I remained here. If it had been another of the companions they would have been convinced."

"...Huh?"

"It's a shame. Really regrettable," I said with a mock sigh.

Noticing something wasn't right, Adlet rushed to grab his belts, but I was faster.

"It's unfortunate, but I'm the seventh," I lied as I moved towards him. The moment he touched his belts, I slashed his neck open...

...just kidding.

I didn't do so, but Adlet had imagined my doing so. Kneeling on the ground with his bare back hunched, Adlet raised a shaky hand to touch his neck, confirming his head was still attached. A dumbfounded look was plastered on his face, like that of a child who'd just met his long lost twin.

I smiled when I finally found solid evidence. "Humans lie with their words. Their actions also deceive. And neither their eyes, voices, nor emotions can be trusted. But, the face of a person in death cannot lie. Directly before death their face will reveal whatever their true intentions were."

Adlet hadn't moved from his position.

"If you were the impostor then you would make a face implying that I being the seventh was ridiculous. But you made a face that seemed to imply that it's all over. Apparently you do not seem to be the impostor."

"I thought...my neck...was cut." Adlet said hesitantly. He still hasn't moved, not even the hand touching his neck. Won't he get cranks?

"Is that right? That's only because you hallucinated that you were cut in that way." I laughed.

All the while I had refrained from staring at Adlet's naked body. Turning my back to him, I gathered up his pile of armor and clothes and threw them to him. "How long are you going to be spaced out like that? Hurry up and get dressed. I have no interest in seeing a man naked." But I'd like to see you naked...when we were alone. But of course, I didn't voice my thoughts, because that would create many unnecessary problems, and now wasn't the time to deal with them.

Besides, one should not hurry love. Love requires time and patience. It's necessary to do things step by step.

As if just noticing his nudity, Adlet blushed and hurriedly dressed himself. How do I know when I had my back turned? Well, I peaked, of course! Thankfully my disheveled bangs covered my blush.

When he was fully equipped, And when my face had cooled down, I turned to him and said, "From now on, let's work well together." I extended my hand and Adlet accepted my handshake. My hand lingered on his for a milli second more, enjoying being smothered in his warm hand, but I don't think he had noticed it. After all, he wasn't the "strongest man on earth" for nothing. Note my sarcasm.

When we retracted our hands, Adlet was smiling so brightly that even made me feel guilty for suspecting him in the first place.

I couldn't help but smile too. Not my usual cheeky grin, but a true, genuine smile.

AN: This is a teaser. If people like it, I will continue writing it.