I hope you found my previous chapters enjoyable. I would like to apologize in advance for any mistakes I may have made. I will have a close friend and amazing writer critiquing it. Her name is Astrid Also known as the Queen of Logical Nonsense. If you have any points or tips I recommend you send it in a private message and I will always get back to you. Thank you and I hope you enjoy.
Ch.11 Don't Forget
The next morning I was up at the crack of dawn. I had woken up to the sound of loud cheers and screaming. I forced myself out of bed to see what the noise was. I heard a scream of pain and began running… then before I knew it I was sprinting. There was a fight. I pushed my way through the crowd so I could see the fight. I finally made it to the front and saw a young girl my age... maybe 15. She had dirty blonde hair in a braid down her back. She wore armor much like my own except it had two black lines going down her sides and was colored bright red. Her eyes were her strong suit though; she had ocean blue eyes that sparkled under the sun. She had a determined look on her face as she held a steel sword and a shield with the head of a lion on it. She was surrounded by multiple reds with swords in each hand. She held her ground and I realized there was a young girl behind her. I raced towards her to help… then suddenly a young man grabbed my shoulder pulling me back. It was my brother.
"But-…" Then I hit my forehead in frustration. I don't even know him name…
"Hayate, that's my name. You haven't asked," I stared at him for a few seconds, then drew my attention back to the girl. I realized Hayate was still holding my shoulder. "She will be fine," he said watching her.
The men opposing her kept throwing insults as they spat on her. She stood in front of the child.
"Pathetic," she mumbled under her breath. She charged the line of men and with a single slice took out all of them at once. Their HP level decreased rapidly almost reaching zero. A few ran for it before anyone could get a hold of them, but a few stayed to continue the fight. "Each of you are very close to death, so close to destroying any chances of seeing the sun again or feeling it against your skin… the air…" she finished still staring at the men.
"That girl, she belongs to me!"one man spat. She didn't even acknowledge the man.
"She is now under my protection from disgusting reds like you. If you value your life, you will return to the slums from where you came," Immediately after, the girl took the child by the hand and led her towards the other part of town smiling sweetly and encouraging her. I guessed she was taking her to the orphanage for young children with missing family members or parents. The stunned crowd dispersed quickly; leaving just me and Hayate. After several minutes in silence I finally spoke up and said,
"Hayate, if everything you told me is true. What's the reason? Why did you obey my father and take care of me? You could've just left after he died." He looked at me with a puzzled expression, like this was an absurd question.
Before he could answer I remembered I had promised Lisbeth I would start work today.
"I have to go!" I said as I ran towards her shop.
"Wait!" I heard him yell back to me. I ignored him and continued on my way.
"Hey, I'm ready to start," I yelled as I entered the shop.
"Can you man the counter?" she answered. I nodded in reply and took a seat. After several hours of helping customers I saw a familiar face. The girl from before approached the counter and dropped a large sack of coin and pointed towards an expensive celestial bronze sword in a glass case on the other side of the store. I stared at her in disbelief, that she had obtained these many coins.
"You're that girl from before… you were in that fight," I stuttered without nodded in reply and started tapping her foot impatiently, waiting for her new sword.
"Oh I'm sorry," as I said this I walked quickly towards sword case and accidentally tripped over some baskets I left on the ground earlier. I hit the floor with a thump. Embarrassed I looked up at the girl who was now smiling. I smiled back while trying to get my foot out of a small basket. The girl got on her knees next to me and pulled on it. While she was trying to help Lisbeth walked into the room and ran to our aid. She got behind the girl and pulled hard. In a few seconds Lisbeth and the stranger pulled it off. All of us were laughing hysterically. I wiped a few tears away and Lisbeth gave each of us a hand and helped us up.
"Thanks," I told the girl. She nodded still smiling a little. "I'm Saya," I said giving her my hand.
"Amaya," she said as she shook my hand. I handed her the sword and she waved good bye to me and was on her way.
"You know… that is one of the strongest players in the area. I heard she has taken out hundreds, but never killed. No one every told me she was kind, I only knew she was serious and very strong. You just made a strong ally Saya," finally finished smirking at me. Lisbeth was weird that way. She was either laughing or cracking a random joke. She was strange like that.
I spent the next few following weeks with Lisbeth, working day and night. By the third week I realized I would have just enough coin to live comfortably for at least a year while on the run.
"Lisbeth it's time, I be moving on," I said while trying to conceal any sadness in my heart. Lisbeth had been God-sent. We took care of each other… she was like my sister. Lisbeth suddenly dropped the sword she had been working on for months and tackled me with a hug.
"Say hello to Katashi for me," she whispered. My eyes opened wide and I realized I hadn't seen or heard from him for almost a month. I had forgotten… Fear washed through me as I wondered if he was even still alive or not. I thought she was just messing with me, but her expression was serious.
"Don't let him slip through your fingers like Kirito-kun did with me. If this is your last life, make it the best you can. That dude cares about you… give him some slack will you?" as she said this she let go of me and went to the back and closed the door behind her. The next morning I packed and left the store before Lisbeth woke up. My destination... the 22nd floor.
