Laxus POV
No matter what I do, she won't open her eyes. Thus, I let go of my right hand on her waist and place it on top of her breast to feel her heartbeat. To my relief, I am still able to detect a faint beating pulse out of her.
Thankfully, she will never find out that I just touched her bosom...
5 Hours Later...
It's been 5 hours since I applied a secret ointment made by Freed to her forehead. I really shouldn't be wasting my time on a mission here, especially because Freed had inscribed his runes on every member of the dark agency so that he can conveniently track on our whereabouts and contact us at anytime. Nonetheless, I suspect that the rune is still capable of more, and only Freed knows.
"Tch, there is simply no trust among each other in the agency..." I lift up my left hand and glare at the purple-colored rune inscribed on its back.
That Freed... due to his pharmaceutical and mysterious rune magic abilities, he was chosen to be right-hand man of Ivan. He hides his face behind a smiling mask and reports directly to Ivan. His speed and adeptness with rapier moves have bestowed him the title of "Freed the Swift".
Even if Freed decides to contact me, I'm sure that even he won't mind a little tardiness excuse coming from the "Phantom Slayer" himself.
"Ngh..." The unconscious girl twitches and whimpers.
She slowly and opens her eyes and meets me in the eyes, and now that we are up close like this, I realize even more just how gorgeous she is. What is this strange sensation I'm feeling? To be honest, I just don't know anymore.
"Oh, it's you from before..." she murmurs.
"Don't try to talk and save your strength. You'll need it."
The unknown girls seems flustered when she realizes that she has been resting her head on my lap this whole time when she was asleep. Even so, she doesn't freak out and try to struggle away this time. In fact, she looks rather happy...
"Umm... the name's Mirajane."
"Huh? Why are you telling me this now?" I give her a curious look.
She blushes and answers, "Consider it my token of gratitude for taking care of me."
"That's fine, but don't expect me to tell you my name in return." I smug.
She quickly roll hers eyes. "I'm not asking you to."
"Anyway," I lower my head at her and ask, "how long do you plan on lying down on my lap?"
She immediately blushes and hurriedly tries to sit herself up, but immediately falls back down on my lap. I realize right away that she's still weak from her fever.
I sigh as I take out another one of Freed's drugs from my pocket. Then without giving any warning, I forcefully shove it in her mouth and choke it down her throat. I can tell already that she's not happy about it...
"Y-You... you bastard! That's no way to treat a lady!"
I ignore her tantrum and explain, "The pill you've just swallowed will temporary cure your fever for at least 24 hours before its effect will wear off."
"Hey, you're right..." She touches her forehead with the back of her hand, "the fever's gone..." She soon gasps in disbelief and asks, "How did you get your hands on such a drug? Who exactly are you, sir?"
"It's just a drug made by my acquaintance back at the agen— I mean, the Magic Academy." I pause and add, " And I'm just a... traveler."
That was close. If I were to slip out another word, then I'd be in serious trouble. Well, at least I manage to convince her somewhat for now.
"Where are you traveling to, sir?"
"Umm... to the Forest of Lost." I lie.
"What!? But that forest is very unsightly and rumor has it that a demon lives beyond the forest! It's very dangerous!"
I immediately scoff, "Look who's talking, aren't you heading to the forest as well?"
"..."
I get up on my feet and sigh. "I'll let it slide. I'm not interested in why you had to go all the way to this valley just to pick apples and why you're also headed to the forest."
I pick up the 3 baskets of apples and start bending down to collect the scattered apples. I could've sworn that she was stealing glances at my rear whenever I bend my body down. Tch, girls, they are all the same...
"Here, take them. I'll be going now."
"You're just gonna leave me here?"
"Yeah, I'm in a hurry, and I wasted enough time with you already."
She pauses and ponders to herself. To my demise, she then comes up with an inevitable question that puts me right in the corner.
"Why would a traveler need to be in a hurry for? It doesn't make any sense to me..."
Damn it! She got me again twice in a row. I hate to admit it, but she has left me no choice...
"Oh fine! We'll head to the forest together! Happy now!?"
I raise out my hand and offer to carry 2 of her baskets with an angry look in my face.
"You know sir, you're so full of mystery..." She frowns and tilts her head to the side.
"Look who's talking! Whatever... let's be off before the sun goes down."
In short, after 2 hours of awkward walking, we finally arrive at the entrance of the infamous "Forest of Lost". I scowl at how sinister and lifeless the forest is. It's as if we've just stepped out of Heaven and into Hell. The spread of flowers and mountain borders stop right here with the exception of the river, which keeps flowing even deeper into the evil forest.
"You ready?" I signal.
"Right behind you, sir~"
The Forest of Lost
"Kyaaa!"
I immediately turn around and swing my dagger to cut off the thorny branches that caught her dress.
"Stop freaking out over everything!"
"But this forest is so creepy and gloomy... I just can't help it." She fidgets her fingers.
"Tch, Just stay close to me and I'll protect you." I gesture for her to come closer.
"Aww~ How sweet of you to protect me, sir~" Her eyes are sparkling, clearly misunderstanding the real intention behind my kindness.
"D-Don't take it the wrong way! I just want you to stop getting in my way!"
I continue cutting off the spiky vines and branches with one dagger in my right hand as we walk through the forest. The road itself is wet and rugged. In addition, the overgrown spread of tree roots make it that even harder to maneuver, especially with 2 baskets of apples on my left hand.
"Kyaaa!" she suddenly jumps and clings on me.
I look at her in a boorish manner and ask, "What is it now...?"
"Eep! There's something moving on my head! Please get it off me! "
Right away, I notice a brown tarantula moving on her head, so instantaneously grab it and fling it away.
"There, now stop clinging on me."
"But I'm scared..." she clings even harder on me.
"Seriously, why would a scaredy-cat like you even consider going inside the forest in the first place..." I sigh.
She looks up at my face and replies, "Well, I live around here, sir. It's just that... I can never get used to the forest..."
Yeah right... who is she trying to fool? But it's really none of my concern, and I decide to just along with her stupid excuses.
"Hehe, Imagine what it'd be like out here when it gets dark." I grin her an evil smile at her.
"Kyaaa!" She screams and shakes her head in fear.
"Stop screaming! You're starting to get really annoying!"
"It's your fault for trying to scare me like that! You meanie!" She grumbles and pounds on my chest repeatedly.
There is an awkward silent between us as we stroll deeper in the forest. After an hour, the sun is now setting, and I've decided that it's about time for me to lose her.
"Hey you, I'm going back now. It's too bad that I didn't get to see the demon, but I've explored enough."
"Oh," She raises a finger and wink an eye at me, "that's because the demon only appears after the sunset and disappears after the sunrise."
That directly catches my attention, so I stare her in the eyes and clarify, "So basically, the demon is only active at night, am I right?"
"Well, yeah..." she answers hesitantly.
"In that case, I'd best get going before it gets dark for my own safety. You should too."
"Yeah, my hut is just beyond here." She points her finger at fork. "Thanks for escorting me all the way here, sir."
"I guess this is goodbye then..."
She unexpectedly shakes my hand and smiles. "You are a very kind man. I believe that we'll meet again someday."
"Heh, don't count on it."
I pass her the baskets and walk back through the forest, only to quickly hide behind a tree when she turns her attention away from me. I grab my cloak from my waist and put it on, along with my angry mask which symbolizes the title of "The Phantom Slayer."
I climb up a tree and stand on top of its crown. From there, I leap from crown to crown and no longer have to put up with the creepy forest. Unfortunately, I got lost on the way. After all, this forest is not called " The Forest of Lost " for nothing. After 3 tiring hours of searching...
"Hmm? What's that glow? "
Right after the sun has completely set down, I spot a purple light emanating and shining bright from inside the forest. Soon, a demon emerges from the forest and flap her wings above the forest in majesty. It's too dark to see her characteristics other than her long and pointy tail.
The demon flies north of the forest, and I decide to follow her secretly to guide my way to the castle.
"Finally, you show yourself, demon..." I think to myself as I stealthily chase after the demon, jumping from trees to trees under the full moon.
It's really hard to keep up with her pace, and there was one time when I had to dive back inside the forest because I notice her scanning around her back. She's definitely a sharp one.
Finally, I arrive at the Kingdom of Grimoire...
The Former Kingdom of Grimoire
This little kingdom met its end during the "Great War of Griore" ( AN: War between Grimoire and Fiore ). Now, there are only remnants of old building and an abandoned castle. Such is the poor state of this once prosperous kingdom.
I keep following the demon until she flies over the gate of the castle. Now that I've reached Grimoire Castle, I activate the rune on my left hand to report in to the dark agency.
"Laxus Dreyar reporting in. Requesting permission to engage target!"
To be continued...
Thanks for reading, and expect tons of Miraxus moment from this point onward. Don't forget to comment and let me know what you think ^_^.