AN: New chappie woohoo!

I'll be honest, I am feeling so f*cking lazy right naow.


It was early morning, and the fishermen of the village began getting ready for departure. They were not catching fish today, and were instead going to ferry two people away from the island and into the mainland. One of the passengers was already on board, and many in the village would have easily recognized him as Abutin, dressed in new clothes and his hair combed in vain, the local orphan of the island and now Eighth Campione of the world.

Abutin felt the wind pass through him, sniffing at the sea-borne sent that came with it. It may be the last time he could in a long while, so he might as well enjoy these familiar sensations. He understood all too well the feeling of missing something when it's gone.

"Abutin, are you ready to go?"

His teacher came walking up the boat, a suitcase in hand and wearing his missionary robes. Abutin smiled and responded cheekily. "Of course I am," he said. "Why else would I be on the boat ahead of you?"

The teacher smiled at his attitude before handing his luggage to one of the fishermen with a 'thank you'. Walking up towards the child, he rustled Abutin's hair, which drew an annoyed grunt from him. "I did not mean it in that sense. I was wondering if you were ready to let go, of your island, your memories, of everything. Some people find it hard to leave familiar places, even if all that they can offer is pain."

Abutin shook his head. "I am not letting go Teacher. I am just finding space for more."

The teacher smiled at his answer. Whether it was because he transformed into a Campione or if it was because of his unnatural personality, it was clear to him that Abutin had grown wisdom of his own, even if his childish nature buried it most of the time.

He thought back on the time they decided to leave the island. It was not of his own decision, but rather on the insistence of the boy that he had decided to help him explore the magical side of the world. In any case, he would have been exposed to it sooner or later, as a Campione can never escape notice, so it would be better for him if he had at least become acquainted with the world first before he was entangled by it.

"What kind of things are we going to see at the mainland Teacher?" Abutin asked, his eyes glittering with excitement.

"Plenty of things, Abutin, both mundane and magical, but whatever the case, you will have never seen anything like it on your island."

Abutin's eyes were practically stars their entire time on the boat.


"Did you hear?"

"Of course, who wouldn't, its unbelievable . . ."

"A Heretic God, vanished, just like that!"

The Mage Associations around the world were in a frenzy. Two days ago, a Heretic God had manifested along the coast of the Philippine sea. The usual response to such an event was to contact those in charge of the area to evacuate citizens, and then plead to the closest Campione in the area to deal with it.

There were two problems with this, however. One was that the Philippines, in short words, was a dark area for the rest of the magical community. They dealt little with the world outside their country and rarely ever had contact with other associations. It was also more than a little alienating towards them, and this stemmed from the unnatural fact that until a few days ago, the Philippines, had not once, ever, been attacked by a Heretic God.

Every country had their own set of legends, every country had their own beliefs and heroes and villains and deities and because of this, Heretic Gods would appear, taking the form of those legends. So naturally, every country had to have been struck by the natural calamities called Heretic Gods at least once.

Every country but the Philippines.

There never any alarms or requests from help from the country, and all the attempts at spying at them from afar, or at least predicting when an attack would occur, had all failed and amounted to nothing.

The country was quite literally, a dark void through which nothing entered or left.

So when for the first time they had been able to detect something unusual, and that just happened to be the absolute worst case scenario of being a Heretic God, many people jumped at the chance to offer help, to gain some contacts, to be able to peer into this mysterious archipelago. Their hopes where dashed, however, when just as suddenly as it appeared, it also suddenly disappeared.

Was this why they were so out of contact with the rest of the world? Was this small little country in the middle of the sea concealing something that made it so they did not need the help of other countries to deal with Heretic Gods and their ilk? Some powerful new spells? A trained organization made specially to deal with such beings? Or perhaps, it was something worse than all of that, perhaps, they had somehow managed to conceal their very own Campione?

Their guesses were wrong, and what was going on in that small country was far worse than their darkest nightmares and far more grand than their wildest dreams.


"Here we are Abutin, welcome to the mainland, specifically, welcome to the city of Batangas."

The teacher spoke as he unpacked their things from the boat. Abutin's eyes where still very excited, staring at the hustle-bustle of the city-folk. He had never experienced anything like this during his time on his island, due to their low population and backwards lifestyle.

"Now listen Abutin, you can go exploring if you'd like, but don't stray too far. You may be a Campione but you can still get lost. Promise you won't go too far?"

Abutin jumped at the chance to look around and responded eagerly. "Sure!"

And without so much as another word he was off like an arrow.

The teacher smiled a little. It seemed that no matter how powerful he had become, he was still twelve years old in mind. Just as he about to resume packing his things, he felt someone approaching.

"Do not try it, old as I am, I am still your superior in combat."

"Heh, damn, your senses are still as sharp as ever, eh, bossing?"

Standing directly behind the teacher with his back turned was a young man, in his mid-twenties at least, with dark hair, and, like all the natives, tanned skin. He wore simple jeans and a gray tank-top, with a red jacket over it.

"Valino. I see you got my message," said the teacher. "I also see that you haven't changed at all."

"Nope, not a bit," said Valino with a grin. "Though I was a bit curious. I wanted to see if after all these years between us I'd finally manage to be able to kill you."

Not at all affected by his words, the teacher laughed. "It is too early, far too early, for you to even think you're good enough to face me, Valino."

The younger man replied with a shrug. "It was worth a try, bossing. So, where is the little Devil you wrote about?"

"I let him explore around. He got excited over seeing the city. He may be a Campione but he is still a child."

"Oh my god, a childish Campione. This is going to be horrible," said Valino with a cringe.

"He is far more wise and mature than you think Valino. Given time I'm sure he will grow to be a finer man than I."

Valino gave the teacher a look. "You sound pretty attached to him. Have you sworn loyalty to a new master already?"

"Haha! Perhaps, perhaps not! Though I am sure the time will come when I will serve under Abutin, the time has not yet come. For now, I have to guide him. Instruct him," the older man said.

"Is that why you need the me and the Missionaries? I'll have you know that even if we no-longer have a master, that doesn't mean we will be so keen to serve a new one," said Valino seriously. "Also, if you think your reputation alone will be enough to sway us, I'll have you know plenty of people consider you a traitor. You were our finest leader, bossing, and you left at the time the Missionaries needed you most."

The two were silent for a time, before the teacher spoke. "I . . . apologize," He started slowly, as if unsure what to say. "But I do not regret my decision. As it was then, I was too disoriented by what had happened to be of any use. If I had stayed, I was sure I would have destroyed what little we had left."

"Better destroyed than let us become the hollow shell you left us with."

The teacher shot Valino a look. He wasn't angry, but it was clear he disliked what Valino had said greatly. "You know as well as I do that she would never have accepted that. The Missionaries are her legacy, and I refuse to let it die. Even hollow shells can be filled once again Valino."

". . . Sigh. You're right, you're always right," said Valino with a resigned look. "I guess that's why you were the leader. Why she chose you as the leader."

"Hm, perhaps. I've never doubted her once except that one moment when she chose me as the leader for the Missionaries. Most terrifying experience of my life."

"Hah! I remember that day! I was still a teen back then, and your hair already started receding."

"If you don't want me to cut you where you stand, I suggest you never bring that up again."

Valino promptly shut up.


Abutin looked around excitedly. There was so much new things!

He stared at the computer in wonder, at the secondhand TV's and radios on display at various shops. His eyes were glued to automobiles as they passed by. Indeed, this would be a moment he would always remember, the moment of when he stepped into a whole new world of possibilities.

In his euphoric state, he did not notice that he had walked right into someone.

"Hya!?"

His new-found physical strength prevented him from tumbling down from the collision. The same could not be said for the person he ran into.

On the ground rubbing her face was a girl, about his age. She was dressed in a white camisole and wearing shorts. In her hands was a stuffed plastic bag. Despite being young, her features almost guaranteed that she would grow up to be a true beauty. Her light olive skin, long shining dark hair, served to emphasize the spark of fire in her eyes. For a second, Abutin thought he was looking at the face of a goddess.

"Watch where you're going bobo!" she shouted as she rubbed her nose again. At once his image of a goddess was shattered. "Maria, what the heck are you made of!"

Abutin stayed silent, unsure what to do. He rarely interacted with the opposite sex, and when he did it was usually trying to ignore them as they teased him.

The girl quickly got annoyed with his silent. "What the heck is wrong with you, you dumb or something?" she said with a sharp glare.

Where all city girls like this? Was Abutin's prevailing thought. The girls in the village teased him, but he never gave them a reason not to and outside of that, he saw that they acted fairly pleasantly.

"U-uhm . . . sorry?" he tried.

The girl gave him a long stare before sighing. "Sorry he says . . . I should sock you right now, but I'm running late as it is, so see ya!"

The girl picked herself up and ran-off in a hurry. Abutin shrugged and went his way, admiring the sights once more. Still, he couldn't enjoy it as much - for some reason the girl would always find herself in his thoughts. There was something there, something about her that disturb him.

He would ignore it for as long as he could, but this would not be the last time they meet. From the moment they met their fates had been intertwined.

It would not be the last time that the Eighth Campione and the Bastard Daughter of Maganda would meet.